Arsenic Riddled Roses
by ttrainsandsewingmachiness
Summary: Love is the strongest and weakest component known. People have to be very strong to withstand it. Edward and Bella are newlyweds, freshly married. Will they be able to stand their ground? Rated M for slight language and mild adult themes.
1. Broken Toes and Restless Nights

**A/N: It seems long only because the preface is added to it. As promised, a longer fiction. Reviews would be lovely. It will make me that much more eager to continue posting chapters. AU/AH. Thanks so much for reading, and Merry Christmas, or Hanukah, or whichever holiday you celebrate around this time of year =]**

**I'm just sitting here by my back door. My dog's leg came out of his socket and a few discs shifted early this morning. So we had to take him to the vet. Now he's home, and it's my job to watch over him and make sure he stays hydrated. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, people. ;]**

"_For your poison love has stained the life blood in my heart and soul, dear."_

--

RESTLESS NIGHTS:

* * *

_A rose is said to be the symbol for love…_

_And arsenic is a poison…_

_What happens when the two elements mix?_

_Love is the best and worst thing to ever happen in one's life._

_Who is strong enough to handle it?_

**PREFACE**

"Are you crying?" His anger abruptly dissipated and he moved closer to me.

"No," I hurriedly rushed to answer.

"Why are you crying?" he wanted to know, the words pouring from his lips like melted honey. My back teeth tingled at the sweetness of it.

I ground my teeth together, rubbing my lips against each other, so much wanting to tell him; at the same time so aversive to it.

The film of my eyes cleared suddenly. I spun toward the door, tugging on the door knob. "JASPER! ALICE! OPEN THE DOOR RIGHT NOW OR I WILL BUST IT DOWN! I'M SERIOUS! OPEN IT _NOW_!" To add to the threat, I kicked the door, ignoring the painful throb of my toe.

A moment later, there was a click in the door and it swung open. I shoved past Alice, ignoring the sudden silence of the rest of the family's conversation. I could feel their eyes burning a hole in my back.

"Bella, wait! Hold on a second!" I heard Edward's voice behind me.

I ignored him, and in my rush to get away from him simply plucked my shoes off the floor and emerged into the night.

I was half way down the drive way when Edward caught my wrist in his grasp. "Stop." He snapped, tugging me to face him.

The only sound in the night was the chirp of the crickets as I glared into his face.

"We need to sort this out. We're meant to be… I love you."

"How can you even say that?" I demanded weakly, ignoring the heat of his skin on mine. "Get your hands off of me."

His grip loosened on my wrist, but not enough.

"Let me go." I whispered pleadingly.

His hand dropped from my wrist.

He didn't say anything, so I turned and headed across the lawn.

Only once I was seated in my car did I notice the black, blue and purple manifesto my toe was. I was pretty sure I had broken it.

--

CHAPTER ONE

I tossed in bed, unable to sleep. My eyes were drawn to the clock, and my heart pounded in panic when I saw the time. Almost three o' clock in the morning. If I didn't get to sleep _now_ I wouldn't make it down the aisle the next day. Then I gulped as I realized how close my wedding was. Almost suffocating me. I clutched my sheets tighter in my fists, drawing them up to my nose, taking in the delicious scent of lavender, hoping it would settle my qualms.

I squeezed my eyes shut, ordering my heart to slow, for my brain to shut down, funnel only to sweet nothings, hushing a sweet lullaby in my mind—one I could fall asleep to.

My eyes popped open not a moment later, and I growled with frustration into the darkness of my bedroom. I pulled myself up into a sitting position in the bed. All around me in the huge extravagance of my bedroom, the white furniture shone eerily in the silvery moonlight washing in through my open window. The gossamer curtains fluttered in the summer breeze, and I felt it wash refreshingly over my skin.

I kicked the sheets away which had tangled about my legs and touched my bare feet to the bleached hardwood floor. I made my way across the room toward my desk where I had stacked my Mac Book, novel and diary. Also accompanied there, was my LG Voyager. I plucked it up, settling into the desk chair, shivering slightly as the coolness of the plastic made friends with the backs of my bare thighs. It'd been too hot to wear pants, so I'd opted for a pair of boxers.

I flipped the phone open to reveal the keypad and sent an urgent text message to one of my closest friends. I hoped to God that she would be awoken, because right then, I was one hundred percent sure that she would be the only one who would inevitably send me into a peaceful sleep.

Sure enough, moments later, my phone vibrated in my palms, and I flipped it open.

**ANGELA: **omg, Bella! U need sleep or else ull be falling asleep at the alter 2morrow!

**BELLA: **uh, tell me about it. Idk y I cant sleep. Im so nervous. Can I call u?

But before she sent me permission, my phone shook once again in my hands, and I saw the screen—alerting me that she was calling.

I brought the phone to my ear. "Hey. Thank God you called."

"Bella, you need _sleep_." Angela dictated groggily.

"Did I wake you?" I joked.

"No," she told me, tone thick with sarcasm, "I'm always up till three thirty in the morning. Especially on the eve of my best friend's wedding."

Hushed laughter escaped my lips. "Sorry, Ang. I just really needed to talk to you. Somehow, you're always able to put me to sleep."

"Oh, thanks." She replied sarcastically.

I laughed. "No problem."

"Hm, okay. How can I put you to sleep?"

She mused in silence for a moment too long and then finally spoke again. "Okay, got it. What can I remember from ninth grade Science? Um… CO2 emissions are destroying the—"

"Zzzz," I fake snored.

"Did I put you to sleep?!" she wanted to know, tone cracking up a few octaves with fake excitement.

"No," I replied, pouting.

"Darn."

I grinned. "Nice try, though."

"Have you tried counting sheep?" she suggested.

"Got to five hundred," I informed her, rising from the desk chair. I rolled it back into its place and moved back to the bed.

"Um… write in your diary?"

"Three entries."

"Drink a warm glass of milk?"

"Ew! You know I hate _cold_ milk. Why would I like _warm_ milk?"

Angela laughed. "Um…" she continued to think, "Did you try reading?"

"I read four chapters of _The Summoning_."

"Uh…meditate?"

I couldn't help the burst of laughter that escaped my lips as I lowered myself onto my back, resting my head to the pillow.

"Sing a song in your head. Practice solitaire. Tell yourself a story. Think of impossible things. Make up an imaginary friend. Tell yourself you're tired. Create a playlist. Watch a movie. Sing a lullaby in your head…"

I don't know when her voice drifted off, but with the help of Angela, my restless night faded into a peaceful dream. In the dream, I was walking along the beach with Edward. We were holding hands, and the purple phosphorescence of twilight surrounded us—encaged us in serene warmth that only we could feel. We flirted aimlessly, teasingly threatened to throw each other into the water. Then we were in the sand, and the tiny grains of it were grinding into my hair, but I didn't care. Edward was over top of me, and our lips were whispering together in synchronization, and that was all I cared about at the moment…

My alarm jolted me out of my dream at seven AM. I found myself oddly alert. I moved my phone from my pillow to my nightstand and then rose from bed, slipped on a pair of nylon short shorts, pulled my sleeping cami off and replaced it with a sports bra. Then I slicked my dark wavelets of hair into a high pony tail. I pulled open my bedroom door, taking in the hallway—bathed in the grey early morning light filtering in through the sky light.

As I tip-toed toward the stairs, I kept in mind the current slumber of the rest of my family members—that included my mom, step-father, some of my cousins, aunts, and uncles.

In the kitchen I filled my water bottle. On the front granite steps, I laced up my sneakers, stretched and then broke into a light jog down the road.

Every morning I jogged, followed by twenty-five sit-ups and ten push-ups. It was amazing what consistency could do for my waist line.

When I arrived back at the house thirty minutes later, I was surprised to find it still empty, the cavernous silence heavy with slumber.

I trekked into the kitchen and slid onto the nearest bar stool, setting my half full water bottle in front of me. The time on the stove clock read 7:34, and when I turned my head to glimpse out the window, I caught the sky turning from grey to a beautiful flushed pink.

Butterflies suddenly invaded my stomach as the reminder of the wedding entered my mind. Today. It was today. Every family member who had been invited was in town, the wedding dress was hanging in my closet. The shoes were first in line on my shoe rack, the fake finger nails set aside in the medicine cabinet. I had never done so great at keeping my nails up to date.

"Shh!" a voice hissed following a thump that could only be a foot against a piece of furniture. They were females, I could tell that much. And they weren't doing such a great job of sneaking down early.

A moment later, my cousins Jayda and Elle appeared in the kitchen doorway, completely oblivious to my appearance. They both wore bikinis, and their towels were slung over their shoulders. Elle's flaming red hair was bunched into a messy pony tail atop her head, while Jayda left her wheat colored ringlets loose around her shoulders.

They made it to the back door, leading to the outdoor pool and hot tub before I decided to call out to them. In a whisper of course.

Elle gasped loudly in fright, pressing one hand to her bare collarbone to suppress her shriek of fright. Jayda, on the other hand, froze where she stood, without turning. I could see the muscles tense in her back.

I giggled in a hushed tone. "I can't believe you're sneaking into the hot tub on an August morning. It's nearly ten degrees already and it's only 7:40 AM," I told them.

Elle was able to offer a soft smile. Her emerald eyes danced, and I found myself envying my eighteen-year-old cousin. I had always wished to have green eyes instead of brown. "Would you like to join us?"

I smiled, shaking my head in decline politely. "No thanks. I don't think I have time to lounge around today."

"Are you kidding?" Jayda asked, finally turning to face me. Her ice blue eyes darkened with doubt. She planted one hand on her voluptuous hip. "You have all the time in the _world_ to relax today! It's your wedding!"

I felt my lips curl up at the utterance of the last sentence. I didn't know how long I had been waiting to hear those words. Ever since I'd turned fourteen, I was suddenly overwhelmed by the romance, the whirlwind, the spotlight, the loving attention that came with your wedding day. Being a writer, I'd begun to type up numerous novels about it, but I had never known enough about love to finish them.

That was where Edward, my fiancé—soon-to-be-husband—came in. We'd attempted to date the winter of grade eight, and I had no idea what had happened. I'd chickened out; the pressure of it all had been too overwhelming. Edward played basketball. He was tall, had huge hands, but was cursed with unfortunate chicken legs and very fair skin. He'd worn glasses, and his hair was parted perfectly to the tee at all times. If anyone had seen us back then, they would have been completely confused as to why we had been dating. Middle school—it's a jungle. Ask any fourteen-year-old girl. I didn't know if it had been conformation I'd caved to, or the opinions—the titters, the whispers—of the students around us that drove me to the edge. But I broke things off with him.

And it was like we'd never even dated. We went back to being best friends, and we stayed that way until I realized I hadn't gotten over him. That fact only became more obvious when he hooked up with Tanya Denali. The worst part? The girl and I were friends. They dated, and I found myself grieving over the boy, though I tried my hardest to hide it.

Between the summers of grade eight and nine, something happened. He ditched his glasses for contact lenses. His jade eyes were suddenly so much more appealing. His hair, before an annoyingly perfect part at all times, was now a slight mess. Like he'd run through the wind to get to school and hadn't bothered to fix it. He'd built some muscle on his legs, and the sun had gotten to him. He looked good, and I forced myself to admit that I was stupid for blowing him off the year before because of what other people thought.

I realized I was in love with Edward. The first guy I'd ever been in love with. But it felt like that was all I needed, that Edward was the one who'd forever fulfill me of what I needed in life.

Grade nine graduation came. He and Tanya were still going strong. Personally, I had no clue what he saw in her.

I wasn't the only one madly in love with Edward. It was like he had his own fan club. Swarms of girls swooned over him, gushed over what a sweetheart he was. And Tanya _knew_. She looked at Edward like she'd won first place in some kind of contest or something.

And where did that leave me? Oh, that's right, outside. In the rain. A loner, left out of an exclusive after party. Ditched.

I tried to move on. Oh, believe me, I did. Nothing worked.

Year after year, after year I tried to imagine what it would be like, to just walk up to him, grab him by the collar of his shirt, and press my lips to his. Just to see what it would be like, what it would feel like. Would tingles run from the roots of my hair to the tips of my toes? Would fireworks flash behind my eyes? Would the world come to a halt for only the split second our lips touched?

I never had the courage to do it.

Edward did it for me. Senior year, he dumped Tanya. I'd been in the library, scavenging for the last Biology text book to study for a huge test. It was like a movie. He'd tapped me on the shoulder, and I'd turned. With not even a moment to comprehend what was happening, his lips were on mine.

And that was all it took. That one silent, undying promise. And we were hooked. Consumed by each other. Tangled in some web that I always knew would come to exist.

And today? We'd be declaring that promise to witnesses from all over. Everyone would know that I'd won the prize, and that it wasn't temporary any longer. It was permanent. I'd held out for the longest time. And I'd won—in all ways possible.

The doorbell rang as I was towel-drying my hair. I threw open the washroom door, releasing a cloud of steam and rushed down the stairs to answer the door.

"Hi, Dad!" I exclaimed when I saw him standing there. I leaned up to hug him, and when I pulled back he was grinning. "How are you?" I asked as I invited him in.

"Great. But the more important question today is 'how are _you_'?"

I giggled. "I'm _wonderful_!" I punctuated the word with a spin to top it off.

Charlie grinned down at me. "I brought you breakfast," he told me, holding up a white Styrofoam box.

"Ooo, yummy!" I said, grinning. "What is it?" I wanted to know, receiving the box from him.

"An omelette and a few strips of bacon. Left-overs from breakfast at the station this morning."

I gave him a teasing, exasperated look. "Left overs?"

He laughed. I trekked into the kitchen, grabbed a fork from the drawer and dug in, leaning against one of the counters. Charlie watched me eat, and after the first bite, I made a show of telling him it tasted delicious, which it did.

"Bella!" I heard a voice say, and looked up to see Elle's younger sister enter the kitchen, platinum blond hair pulled back from her face with a turquoise hair band. She wore her pajama pants still, but on top she wore a beautiful green silk halter. In her right hand she held a small black dress with a sweetheart neck line and frills at the bottom. In her left she held a strapless rich purple dress that cinched at the waist. "Which one?" she asked, staring at me breathless. "The shirt or one of the dresses?"

I narrowed my eyes in thought. "Umm… the purple dress."

"That's what I was thinking too!" she exclaimed, face brightening with happiness. Then she bolted from the kitchen, heading back towards the stairs, calling 'thank you' over her shoulder.

"Shouldn't you be the one receiving advice today?" Charlie asked me after Blair had disappeared up the stairwell.

I shrugged, taking another bite of the omelette. "I don't mind," I told him. "Besides, they have to be ready before I do. They have to be at the club before one. I have to be there at one thirty."

"Lilly?" I then heard my mother call. "Have you seen Bella?"

"I think she's in the kitchen."

A moment later, my mother glided through the kitchen doorway, cheeks flushed, blue eyes sparkling. Her jaw grazing bob was damp and I could see the purple high lights in it. "Oh, hey, Charlie," she muttered vaguely in my father's direction as she moved closer to me.

He nodded politely.

Her warm palms rested on either side of my jaw, and she smiled into my eyes. "Nervous?" she asked.

I nodded. "A little," I admitted. And that was all I was going to admit. No one would even understand how nervous I was. It was too ginormous to comprehend.

She grinned. "It'll be perfect. I promise," she told me, leaning in to kiss me on the forehead. Then she glanced over my shoulder at the clock hanging on the wall. "Oh, where are the girls?" she fretted.

_The girls_ were my best friends. We'd all basically known each other since the beginning of elementary. "They'll be here, Mom," I was now reassuring her. "Rose probably won't get out of bed," I giggled.

Renee tried to smile, but she didn't quite make it.

Then my aunt entered the room, holding my youngest cousin, Trevor, in her arms. He was rubbing his eyes, and his mass of curly corn silk colored hair was wild from sleep.

"Hey, Trev," I greeted him as Auntie Carrie set him on the counter. Despite just waking up, he grinned my way, waving his small, pudgy hand through the air.

Renee disappeared from the kitchen, muttering to herself over the stress of all she had to still do.

Then I turned back to my father, laughing at the awkward expression on his face. I shovelled the last of the eggs into my mouth, dumped the box into the garbage, fork into the dish washer, and then moved over to him. "I'll walk you to your car," I told him, clearly sensing his discomfort beneath the suffocating shroud of Renee's side of the family.

I padded barefoot through the foyer beside him and then followed him out into the early August morning, basking in the sunlight. As we walked I peered up at the sky. Wisps of clouds floated lazily across the azure stretch of sky, resembling the consistency of cotton candy. The sun was high in the sky and its rays soaked heavenly into my skin.

"I'll see you soon, okay?" Charlie said when we reached his car.

I nodded, smiling.

He pulled me into a hug and I took in the familiar smell of him. Leather, soap and mint aftershave. "I love you," he murmured into the top of my head, kissing me.

"Love you too," I whispered as I pulled away, suddenly choked up with emotion. Then I groaned inwardly. If I was close to tears now, just imagine how it would be later today… I watched my dad climb into his car and then pull out into the street, escaping just as the screams began.

"SLOW DOWN!" I suddenly heard a frantic shriek call over the roar of an engine. "YOU'RE GOING TO KILL US!"

"AHHH!" Another girl responded, screaming at the tops of her lungs.

I rolled my eyes. "Incoming," I muttered obscurely, not daring to take my eyes of the approaching black Suburban.

"ROSALIE!" the voice screamed. "YOU'RE GOING TO RUN HER OVER!"

For a moment, I was almost positive she was going to, but then the SUV squealed loudly to a stop at the curb. Angela stumbled from the back of the vehicle, leaning over to press her palms to her knees. A curtain of dark hair fell over her blanched face. Rose stepped proudly from the driver's seat, oversized, blue lens tinted sunglasses almost weighing down her face. Her lips were carved into a huge smile.

From the passenger seat, Alice slipped onto the pavement.

"Hiii!" Rose called, leaping over to wrap her arms around me.

I flailed my arms, thinking about wrapping them back around her, but it was sort of difficult when they were pinned to my sides.

"Helllp," I muttered instead to Alice who stood aside, smirking.

She giggled and stepped closer. "Rose, let go of her before she asphyxiates on your disgusting perfume."

"I _thought_ you smelled different," I told Rosalie when she stepped back, "but then I just thought it was because you showered for once."

Rosalie rolled her eyes, swatting me playfully on the arm. "Shut up."

I grinned, turning to Alice. "Holy crap!" I cried when I literally came eye to eye with her. Then I glanced down at her feet and sighed with relief. She wore platforms. "Phew!" I sighed, dramatically swiping the back of my hand across my brow.

Alice pursed her lips, eyes filling with defensive fire. She raised her hand, ready to swat.

I backed away, bringing my hands up to shield my face. "Not today!" I begged.

Angela and Rosalie began to giggle.

Alice lowered her hand mercifully. "Oookay," she amended, "just because it's your wedding."

I grinned. Then I looked around. "Hey, where's Lauren?"

I saw Alice roll her eyes, and Angela begin to giggle again.

Right on cue, there was a splash and then a couple of girlish shrieks from the back yard.

Rosalie, Alice and Angela burst out laughing and I suspected Lauren had just fallen into the pool.

A moment later, my suspicions were confirmed when the gate opened, and Lauren stepped toward us, soaking wet. Droplets of water splashed to the concrete and she was scowling fiercely.

"That's what you get," Alice told her, shrugging.

"When you let your heart win!" I added.

After a rendezvous off-key rendition of "That's What You Get" by Paramore, we were serious once again.

Then I laughed and approached Lauren. "Why were you in my back yard anyway?" I asked her, flicking a water logged piece of hair from her face.

"I wanted to be a ninja," she admitted pouting.

Laughter escaped through my lips. "Well, obviously it didn't work."

She cracked a smile. "I thought I had it when I got to the top of your castle-like stone wall,"

"It's not that tall," I argued.

Lauren shrugged. "When I got to the top, it was too late to turn back. Boy was I in for a surprise."

I snickered. "Awe, poor Lauren," I moped, wrapping my arms sincerely about her body.

"Bella!" I heard Renee call from the porch then, waving the phone. The sunlight glinted off of it. "Rachel's on the phone!"

"Rache?" I muttered in confusion. She was supposed to land here at ten this morning. It was barely eight o' clock… I stumbled up the walk, taking the phone from her. I lowered myself to the bottom step, only then realizing that the concrete was burning the soles of my feet.

"Hello?"

"Bells? Hi. It's Rachel."

"Hey! Why are you calling me? It's only eight."

"Nine here, actually," she corrected me. I could clearly hear the bustle of the air port in the background.

I smiled slightly. "Shouldn't you be on your plane?"

"Um, it kind of got delayed," she admitted.

"Oh no!" I groaned.

"What?" Rosalie mouthed, coming up the walk, Lauren, Alice and Angela trailing right behind her.  
I waved at her dismissively. "How long?" I asked Rachel.

"An hour. But it's fine. I should make it there by eleven thirty. Twelve at the latest."

I felt my nose crinkle in discomfort. She would be so tired, and she'd have to rush through getting ready and then get to my wedding. "Ugh, well that sucks."

I could practically see Rache's soft smile through the telephone wires, cerulean eyes sparkling. "Yeah, well. Nothing's perfect," she reminded me.

"Right you are," I agreed. "Well, call me when you land, okay?"

"I promise."

"See you soon," I told her, and then hung up.

"What was that about?" Angela asked as I stood.

"Rachel's flight got delayed. But she's only gonna be about an hour late," I assured them as I led them back into the house. When we stepped through the front door it was as if every single one of my family members from Renee's side had been dropped in through the roof. The foyer was crowded, people were taking up nearly every seat in the dining room and kitchen, and children had been sent into the sitting room to play quietly while mothers got ready and helped my mom make breakfast for at least twenty people.

"Oh my God," Lauren gasped.

"Quick, troupes," I hissed playfully, taking Angela's hand. When I dragged her toward the stairs, the others followed. "We need to make our escape now! Stat! Before they see you!" I urged, ushering them past me, up the stairs.

When we reached my bedroom, I slammed the door behind me, leaning against it.

"Who's ready to partay?!" Rosalie suddenly called from my glass bookshelf. She plugged her iPod into my dock, and "Somebody's Watching Me" by Rockwell blasted through the bedroom, drowning out the drone of family affairs on the first floor.

This was what I had been missing most about my friends. The fact that I could be silly with them. That I could have my window wide open, risking people seeing me and not even care. To leap around like an infatuated teenager on my bed, ruffling the covers.

To act like freaks, and love every freaking moment of it.


	2. The Win

**A/N: Hey, guys! So, here's chapter two to Arsenic-Riddled Roses. Sorry it took so long. I thought I'd have a lot of free time over my Christmas break, but obviously not. Anyway, here's another… long chapter. Sorry =S. As the story progresses, the chapters get shorter (I'm talking like 5-6 pages, not 2) so it'll get better. I promise!**

"_Two souls but with a single thought, two hearts that beat as one." –Friedrich Halm_

_-_

THE WIN:

* * *

My cell phone vibrated loudly on my desk when Rosalie and Alice were in the other room. Angela and Lauren didn't notice it. They were too involved in their discussion about Naruto or something. It was funny how they'd never gotten over the anime thing. They'd been into it since—or maybe I just hadn't noticed until—9th grade. Discretely, I reached behind me in my desk chair and brought my phone into my lap, glancing at the screen. My heart jumped into my throat with excitement when I saw who the text message was from. I hurriedly pressed 'Read Now'.

**EDWARD: **excited? Nervous? Cold feet?

I glanced up at my friends before ducking my head again to type my reply.

**BELLA: **excited, nervous, feet r toasty wrm. Rnt u busy? Y do u have tym 2 txt me?

I slipped the phone quickly beneath my butt when Rosalie and Alice re-entered the room. The two of them combined had to be about the most superstitious person in the country. Then I gasped and burst out laughing.

"How do we look?" Alice asked, striking a pose.

"Where did you find that?" I demanded between fits of laughter.

"In _your_ make up bin, actually," Rose replied, waltzing over to my mirror to check the bright green eye shadow she wore.

"Oh, I really look forward to you guys wearing _that_ to my wedding," I joked. They'd applied it from their lids all the way up their brow bones.

Rosalie grinned at me in the mirror.

The phone hummed against my butt, and Alice cocked her head. I could almost see her ears perk up. "What was that?" she wanted to know.

"Nothing," I blurted. "I didn't hear anything." I shouldn't have spoken. One look at my face and they knew something was up. My crimson cheeks were a dead giveaway.

"Who is it?" Alice asked, venturing closer.

"Who? What? W-what are you talking about?" I asked, giggling nervously. Rosalie joined her in the predatory stalk toward me and I gulped. "It's no one!" I cried.

Rosalie's cornflower blue eyes narrowed in doubt. "Yeah, right. Fork it over."

"Fork _what_ over?!" I widened my eyes, trying to make it look like I was innocent, but my phone vibrated against the plastic chair again, and it completely gave me away. _Thanks, Edward._

"GIVE!" Rosalie yelled, diving at me.

I screamed, cringing away from her. Hands shoved and I was suddenly on the floor.

"AHA!" Alice cried out in victory holding my phone over her head. "I WIIN! I'm the _wiener_!" she cried, laughing. Alice leaped onto my bed and flipped open the phone. She began to bounce and her words became broken up, but I was still able to understand that she was reading Edward's messages aloud. "I'm not busy. The guys are drinking beer and being stupid. Make sure the girls stay sober, 'cause they might need a little support." She was silent for a moment as she clicked over to the next message. "Hello? Bella?"

"Let me answer him!" I begged, scrambling toward her.

"Ah, ah, ah!" she scolded, skilfully dodging my arms which were _so_ close to capturing her.

"ALICE!" I cried.

"Girls? Is everything alright in there?" I then heard my mother call.

"NO!" I whined, calling through the door. "They won't give me my phone!"

Renee laughed, and then it faded, making it clear she was walking away. I sighed, scowling Alice's way, and then left the room, emerging into the battlefield. I dodged around small kids on the stair case and trekked into the kitchen to get a glass of water.

I was enveloped from behind in a huge hug and lost my breath for a moment. "Bells!" the voice called and I knew who it was in an instant. I turned to see my Uncle Kyle grinning at me.

"Hi!" I said, leaning up to wrap my arms around him again.

"Isabella!" I heard Renee gasp from behind me and I turned to face her. "Look at you! What have you girls been doing up there?"

"Um, obviously nothing." Uncle Kyle snickered.

Renee observed my make-up less face, my hair which hung loose around my shoulders, and the grungy t-shirt I still wore.

"I can't do anything!" I complained. "Jess isn't here yet!"

Renee sighed. "I'm sure the girls could get you dressed up just fine."

"Mom." I huffed, planting one hand on my hip. "You should have seen Rosalie and Alice five minutes ago. They're wearing green eye shadow! I don't want them to dress me up. Besides, Jessica has all the make up. She bought it all."

Renee rolled her eyes, moving towards me. She put her hand on the small of my back and directed me back toward the stair case. "Just try to begin to get ready. There are only two hours until we have to leave."

"Two hours?!" I screeched in surprise, spinning to look at her.

"I know!" she said, eyes widening. "Now, hurry up," she demanded, patting me once on the butt.

I began to trek back upstairs when the doorbell rang. I turned to answer it. When I pulled open the door, Jessica grinned back at me, Prada bag dangling from the crook in her elbow, flaming hair pulled back into a messy yet conservative bun. Her forest green eyes were lined very thinly with black eyeliner, but even the tiniest of make up made her facial structure pop.

"Heyy!" I squealed, leaning forward to hug her.

"Careful," she warned, and I could hear the smile in her voice. When I pulled away she held up her arms. Occupying both of her hands were Starbucks cups. "Starbucks anyone?"

"Jess!" I squealed, grinning. I was so excited I even jumped up and down, clapping my hands together sporadically. "You're my bestest friend! I love you!" I cried as I retrieved the blueberry frappucino from her right hand. I sucked some back, but she quickly stole it back. "Ah, ah, ah," she scolded, "that one's mine. This one's yours," she corrected, handing me the strawberry. "You don't want your lips all purple for the wedding."

I pouted, but sipped meagrely from the green straw.

Jessica slipped past me, into the house. "Oh, God, look at you." She groaned, observing my face.

"What?" I asked, suddenly defensive.

"C'mon," she said, gripping my elbow. We began our ascent up the stairs. When we entered my bedroom, they swarmed me, stealing my cup from my hands.

"Hey!" I whined as Rosalie, Alice, Angela and Lauren took turns sipping from my cup.

"Don't mind them," Jess muttered, tugging me over to the desk. She shoved me down into the chair. "Might as well get some work done while they're distracted," she observed. As Jess set up her paraphernalia of make up, I watched as my friends downed my beloved frappucino.

"That one's mine!" Rosalie cried, snatching the haltered rose and dark chocolate colored dress from Lauren's hands. "_This_ one's yours," she told her, shoving a dress identical to the first in her hands. I rolled my eyes from where I lounged on my bed.

Alice and Jessica were comparing their dresses, trying to figure out which one was theirs.

All five of the girls wore their hair half up, half down. Perfect ringlets framed their faces, and the rhinestone encrusted bobby pins glittered beneath the rays of sunshine blasting in through my opened window. Faces done elaborately up, I had to admit that each and every one of them looked beautiful.

Angela and Lauren were the most drastic changes though. Neither of them had really worn a lot of makeup through high school, and I finally understood why. Now, under the impeccable flawlessness Jessica had painted across their faces—she worked as a makeup artist, as well as an editor—they looked inhumanly, outrageously beautiful. Hair shining, smiling lips, they looked completely blissed out as they paraded around in their underwear, trying to decipher one dress from the other.

I hadn't changed into my dress yet. I could see the edge of it jutting out from behind the slightly opened door of my closet, and my heart burst frantically into palpitations. I glanced across my room at my clock, taking in the time. It was half past twelve.

We had an hour before we had to be there. We had an hour until my life was forever and drastically changed. An hour to decide if I was going to back out or not.

I ran the pads of my fingers over the dark blue ribbon woven into my hair.

When I next looked up at my friends, I felt my lips curve into an exhilarated smile. "You guys look _amazing_!" I squealed joyfully, taking them all in. Of course, I'd seen them in their dresses before, but this time, something was different. Maybe it was the excitement of the day, or the sunlight piercing the golden accents on the dark chocolate dresses. Either way, they looked amazing.

Alice admired herself in my mirror for a moment, smoothing out the nonexistent creases in the knee length skirt, and then quickly turned back to my closet. She pulled the dress off the hook, and it flowed out into the room. I was suddenly unbelievably excited to climb into it.

"Something old," Renee whispered as she ran her fingers over the sparkling tennis bracelet I wore around my wrist. It had been my Grandma Marie's. "Something new," she continued, her fingers fluttering over my silk sheathed waist, referring to the dress. "Something borrowed, something blue" she finished, fingers fluttering over the blue love-knot braided through my hair. Then her blue eyes lifted to meet mine. "You look stunning."

"Something borrowed, something blue, something old, something new!" Jess called out with a funky little swagger down the upstairs hallway. I burst out laughing, not caring that my mother was still present in the bedroom. I saw the smirk twist her berry colored lips as she watched Jessica near us.

"Something borrowed, something blue, something old, something new!" she cried out again, stepped through the doorway.

Renee rolled her eyes as Jess and I choked on our laughter. "You girls," she scolded half-heartedly.

"What are you borrowing?" Jess demanded to know, plopping butt first onto the bed next to me, sending me bouncing a little.

"Um, this." I told her, holding up my wrist.

She nodded knowingly. "Ah, something old _and_ borrowed."

"Something new," I said, gesturing to my dress. "Annddd, something blue!" I finished happily, pointing to the love-knot.

Jess suddenly shook her hands vivaciously through the air. "Oh, oh, oh! I have a joke for you. I made it up just for this special occasion!"

"What is it?" I wanted to know, twisting to look at her.

"Why did the chicken cross the road?" she questioned. Her lips twitched, and I knew she was fighting a smile.

"Umm… to lay an egg?"

Jess giggled and shook her head from side to side.

"Uh… how 'bout to get to the other side?"

"BECAUSE SHE WAS GETTING MARRIED!" Jess shrieked, letting the grin make its appearance.

By this time, Renee had disappeared.

I stared at her fixedly. Blinked.

She inclined her head toward me. "Because… she… was… getting…married?" she repeated slowly.

"That's… not funny," I so obviously pointed out.

Jessica burst into hysterics. "I KNOW!" she screamed through her laughter.

It suddenly clicked inside my head how utterly stupid the joke was and I began to shake with suppressed laughter again. But it was too difficult to hide, so I began to laugh just as hard as she was. It was then that the silk of my dress decided to slip and slide against the comforter of my bed, and I tumbled onto the floor. But I didn't stop laughing.

The summery bright trees and cars zipping down the highway seemed to fade into the background as the limo pulled into Heritage Park. Alice slapped my thigh and I yelped.

"Oh my God!" she yelled. "We're here!"

"Yes, Alice!" I praised her slowly, like she was a first grader, "Wonderful observation!"

Alice rolled her eyes in contempt.

Rosalie grinned at me, and I settled into the seat, pressing the pad of my thumb against one of the heads of the pins that held the bouquet of flowers in place. Moon flowers, died carnations and Queen Anne's Lace were cradled together in the elaborately silk wrapped scarf my mother had lent me.

The limo halted in the empty parking lot,--we'd rented out the park for this day—and my heart leapt into my throat along with it. This was it. There was no backing out now. Well, maybe… Would the driver turn around if I told him to? Not that I ever would. I was nervous… Oh, hell, was I ever. But I held no regrets toward the fact that I was marrying Edward.

There was silence while the driver's door opened, and then a few moments later the driver pulled open the back door. "Ladies," he said, holding out a smooth, white gloved hand. Rosalie rested her long, fair fingers upon his and flowed smoothly from the buttery back seat of the limo, clutching her flowers in one hand. Girl by girl, my side of the wedding procession moved slowly from the limo. I was saved for last. The sunlight penetrated the silk of my dress, soaking into my skin when I was exposed to the sunlight. I squinted against the glare of it.

"You remember the plan, right? I'll drive around to the back, and once you all make your escape, we'll drive to the picture destination, right?" the driver reviewed with me.

A slight nod his way was all I could manage.

"If I may be the first one to say it," the driver then spoke again, "congratulations, miss,"

"Thank you," I told him, and I meant it. I could see deep in his eyes that it was genuine. And then he climbed back into the limo and pulled away.

Jessica raised her wrist to her face, peering at the face of the watch attached to her silver charm bracelet.

"We gotta go," she told me, lifting her eyes to reach mine. "See you soon, okay?"

I nodded, forcing my lips into a smile. But it was like pushing them through heavy amounts of nervous hardening cement.

They each took their turn hugging me, and then scurried through the gravel and pebbles down toward where the old church would be. That was where we were being married. As if on cue, right after they left, the Old Nash pulled up behind me. Soft rose ribbons were attached to the doors, drawing a ring of beauty around the green exterior of the old car. I smirked at the familiar licence plate on the front of the car, situated between the head lights. _Get in, sit down, and shut up_.

Vaguely, I could hear Pachebel's Canon flowing through the slightly humid air of the early afternoon. How could I possible hear it? Was it really that loud? Either way, it meant that my bridesmaids were making their way down the aisle. And that Edward was already at the front, awaiting my arrival.

Again, the butterflies leaped like kangaroos inside the caverns of my stomach.

"Bella, you look…" I glanced up to see Charlie moving toward me.

"Dad!" I interrupted, taking in his appearance. "You look amazing!" I complimented, avoiding the tidal wave of emotion that wanted to sweep over me. But I fought it, concentrating on how debonair my father looked in his tuxedo. His salt and peppered hair gave him the appearance of maturity, not age, and his dark eyes sparkled now, instead of waiting in the dark all his life.

He shrugged modestly, hands in his pockets. When he came up again, he held the boutonniere in his hand. "I couldn't figure out how to put it on," he admitted, and I saw the faintest hint of pink touch his cheeks.

I grinned and stepped up to him, the heels of my shoes clacking against the heated pavement. "Here," I told him, taking it from him. I examined it for a moment and then raised my eyebrows, staring at him in question. "It would probably work better if we had a pin to work with," I joked, pulling one from my own bouquet. I pinned it to his lapel and then straightened his tie just for good measure.

"Thanks," he told me.

Then he was helping me into the back of the Old Nash, and he was in the driver's seat. Almost five minutes later, we pulled up in front of the church. I had been instructed to stay put until my father came around to receive me, so I did.

From inside the car I could hear the March begin, but I focused my eyes on the bouquet in my lap and tried to make sense of why they were blurring. I realized then that my hands were shaking. Make that my whole body…

A hand touched mine, and I looked up, startled into Charlie's face.

"Ready?" he asked, and I thought I could see the slightest glimmer in his eyes, but he cast his gaze downward before I could really be sure.

I tried to say 'Yeah', but my voice wouldn't work and all that escaped from my throat was a squeaky breath. I tried again, and my voice was back. "Yeah. Let's go." I said more firmly this time. Really, I was quite surprised at how confident and sure my voice sounded. The complete opposite when it came to other parts of my body. For instance, the butterflies battering their wings against the walls of my stomach, too noticeable to ignore. The slickness against my palms, the tingle beneath my skin. The slight light headedness I felt. The vibration of my hands and knees.

I was worried that my knees would give way when I touched the ground, but I was proven wrong. My feet made purchase with the ground without a problem. Some of the pebbles were able to find their way through the spaces in my strappy sandals. Charlie's hand gently pulled my arm through his, and he clutched it there. His coat was itchy against my bare arm; but then, I was lucky I had him. For someone to lean on.

It was then that I could hear the excited buzz of people ringing in my ears. Almost topping the volume of the March. The slight echo through the cavernous room as people twisted to get a better look at me.

I kept my eyes downward, not daring to look up—as we began our walk down the aisle—afraid that if I caught someone's eye my cheeks would flash red. And the last thing I wanted that day was to be counted on as the blushing bride.

I focused on the dusty floor beneath me.

Carefully, I inched my eyes forward, until I took in the legs of the chairs of the front row, and the lined up feet of the bridesmaids, the groomsmen, the priest, and, finally, Edward. I followed those shoes to the black pants, up the legs, over the jacket, over the lapel with the boutonniere pinned to it, over the supremely knotted tie, to his face. Limpid jade pools framed by thick, natural lashes, over cheekbones seemed to be carved into the face of an angel. Angular jaw curved, full lips lifted in a heartbreaking, revering smile. His teeth gleamed beneath the sunlight. Perfect, only that way because of the braces he'd worn through middle school. The copper facets in his hair. The gel tamed it a little, but no body could ever bridle that adorable disarray.

When I took in the utter joy on his face I felt the tears fill my eyes, even though my jaw hurt from smiling so wide at him. Edward was the only one I could focus on at that moment. Nothing else mattered, except my father's hand on mine, reminding me to keep my slow and steady pace.

The butterflies evaporated from my stomach, leaving a smouldering urge in the pit to just _be there_ already! The clamminess in my hands miraculously dried up, and I finally felt like I was actually back on Earth again.

Focusing on these things and not the jaw clenching urge to sprint head long up the rest of the aisle got me there quicker than expected.

Once we were in front of Edward, Charlie turned toward me, shrugged my veil off my shoulders and leaned in to kiss my cheek tenderly with tears in his eyes.

Edward stepped forward and grasped Charlie's hand in a warm handshake, unable to quit smiling. I didn't think I could either. Maybe they were tattooed on our faces for life.

Once the hand shake was over, Edward extended his hand toward me. Charlie lifted my hand from his arm and in a symbol as old and as treasured as the universe, put my hand in his. Charlie stepped aside as Edward took his place, and took my other hand into his.

"Who gives this woman to this man?" the priest's voice called into the open, slightly stale air of the church. I only realized then that the March had stopped playing.

"We do," my mother and father spoke simultaneously.

I heard the echo of his shoes against the floor as Charlie moved to take his seat, and then the ceremony embarked.

As I focused on the phosphorescent joy lit from deep inside Edward, it seemed as if the priest's voice was sinking beneath waves. Farther away, until I couldn't make out the words he was saying. My eyes began to drift, taking in the faces of both families. The deep brown eyes from my side, handed down from generation to generation, the angelic facial structure on Skyler's side. The startlingly beautiful green eyes which his parents shared.

Without seeming to notice it, I became lost in that sea of beautiful jade.

His smile was hypnotic. I couldn't look away until it shifted into something of a frown. Why would he be frowning?

"Bella?" the voice was coming back, growing in volume, as if I were being woken from a dream. "Bella." Skyler's lips were moving. Was he talking? "Bella!"

I blinked and the sounds came roaring back suddenly. The breeze shifting in through the church doors, the slightly panicked murmuring emitting from the audience's lips, and Skyler's voice.

"Bella..." He said again, his fingers squeezing mine.

"Oh!" I said, realizing that everyone was waiting for me to do something. "What?" I then asked turning toward the priest. "I'm sorry. I was a little… distracted," I admitted, eyes shifting back to Edward's face. I felt my cheeks burn.

Thankfully, Edward's lips had curled into a grin once more, only this time a little amused.

The exchange of the vows and rings went smoothly after I actually focused. They glinted brightly in the sun breaking in through the stained glass windows, and so did Edward's eyes. The priest recited the binding words, "You may kiss the bride," and I had to force myself to stop smiling so we could kiss.

Edward reached up to rest the pads of his fingers to my jaw line and I stretched hurriedly on my tip toes, in a rush to seal the promise we had made to each other. Our lips melded together and I felt the electric tingle rush my veins crackling from my fingertips in the intensity of the moment.

"HOME RUNNN!!" I heard Edward's best man, Emmett, call from behind him, and my lips curled at the edges. It took all my strength not to grin in the middle of the kiss.

All I cared about at that moment was the erratic pounding of my heart. I prayed to God that I wouldn't go into cardiac arrest.

"Wow, it's nice in here," Edward observed, glancing around the back of the limo as he bounced slightly in his seat beside me. We could have just walked down to the fair and shops in Heritage Park where we were going to take our pictures, but apparently we were too lazy. Besides, the girls had insisted that they didn't want to get pebbles in their shoes without a good reason to do so. I had to agree with that.

"I know!" Alice agreed from the seat across from us as her hands paused at Jessica's bodice. She was trying to re-pin the deep v neck so that she wouldn't be so 'revealed'

"Don't stab me, please!" Jess begged, squeezing her green eyes shut, clenching her fingers into fists.

Alice flashed me an evil smile before turning her full concentration back to Jess's dress.

"Allo, ladies and gentlemen," Emmett greeted us, yanking open the shining black door of the limo. He tipped his short top hat our way before frisbeeing it into the limo. Spencer waved her arms sporadically grimacing when the hat landed in her lap, as if someone had just thrown a mouldy sandwich at her.

"Ready?" Emmett asked, backing up a few paces.

"Em, don't!" Edward called, reaching out, but it was too late.

Like a diver entering a pool, he launched himself through the air, zipping through the limo doorway. He landed sprawled across the laps of Edward, me, and two other groomsmen. He rested his elbow on my far thigh and gazed up at me.

"Hey, princess, how ya doin'?" he asked, irking his eyebrows suggestively.

I rolled my eyes, and then whacked his elbow from my leg with my hand, resting my elbow, in turn, atop his head. I pressed my fingers to my lips, turning to look at Edward. Then I rolled my eyes grinning as Emmett squirmed underneath me.

It was all good until the far groomsman, Eric, got kicked in the nose with the heel of Emmett's shiny shoe.


	3. An Unexpected Visit

**A/N: You lucky ducks! Two chapters two days in a row! Hopefully you guys are all having a nice Christmas break =] And happy new year! Leave a review telling me your resolutions.**

"_There's always one…"_

The stream of profanities pouring from Eric's lips was almost as startling as the crimson river flowing from his nostrils. He cupped his hands beneath his chin, quickly gathering a puddle of blood. Oh, that's just great. I felt my stomach twist.

"Oh my Gosh! Are you okay?!" Angela cried, her blue eyes filling with sympathy.

Eric groaned, swiping his wrist beneath his nose, still able to keep the small puddle of blood efficiently trapped in the cup which was his hands. "I think he broke my nose."

Emmett rolled off of our laps, onto the floor. "Jeez, man. I'm sorry," he apologized to Eric.

"It was my fault," I piped up. "I was the one who sent Emmett into convulsions."

"It's not your fault," Edward assured me, resting a hand on my shoulder.

I nodded fervently anyway. "Yes it was," I insisted. Then I unbuckled and scrambled toward where the partition to the driver's seat was. "Sir?" I called through the thick glass. "Do you know if there's a hospital nearby?"

"Why?" he asked, clearly startled.

"Um… I think we broke someone's nose," I admitted.

"Uh," he had to think for a moment, "sure. I think there's one off the exit outside of the park."

"Could we make a stop there, please?" I questioned.

"Of course, miss."

"Thank you," I told him, and then settled back in my seat as he raised the partition again.

"Here," Angela was saying, offering a Kleenex to Eric.

"Thanks," he mumbled, beginning to mop up the blood. Then he licked another one, swiping at where he assumed the dried blood would be on his face.

Angela quickly offered to help, and I couldn't stop myself from smiling.

When the nurses saw a whole entire wedding party pile through the emergency doors to the hospital, all of their faces went blank.

"Um, hi," I said, approaching the desk. "We're pretty sure he," I gestured to Eric, "broke his nose. Well, actually… I think I did, but anyway, can we get a doctor to look at him?"

The nurse stared at me as if I were seven feet tall.

"Dude!" Emmett blurted, shoving me out of the way. He slapped his palms to the faux-granite countertop and leaned forward. "We need a doctor because we need our pictures taken _now_ before Edward and Bella's families begin their rabid witch search for us. Also, it would be nice to start before Eric's face turns into some sort of marble manifesto, taking over his face like mould on a week old orange. But we can't start until his nose is repositioned because it would look super lame in the photos."

Surprisingly, the nurse blinked and then was all business again. I rolled my eyes, crossing my arms. What? Was I speaking German or something?

"Sure. We'll get him in as soon as possible," she told Emmett. "Just take a seat in the waiting room for now."

Everyone found seats in the waiting room while I slipped outside to answer my ringing cell phone. I pulled it out of the small clutch I was carrying.

"Hello?" I asked, bringing the phone to my ear.

"Hi, Bella. It's Melinda," the woman on the other line answered.

"Oh, hi!" I said. "Uh, yeah. I know we should be at the picture place right now, but on the way there Emmett broke Eric's nose by accident, so now we're at the hospital…"

"Oh! Is he okay?" she asked.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. We'll be there as soon as possible, kay?"

"Okay," Melinda answered, clearly way more worried than she cared to show.

"Thanks. See you later," I said, and then hung up. I slipped my phone back into my clutch as I drifted back through the hospital doors, ignoring the bewildered stares I got from people.

When I joined everyone in the waiting room, they were laughing about some joke or the other. Edward took my hand as I flopped with difficulty into the chair beside him.

"Ugh, this dress is so _long_," I complained, lifting my feet so I could pull the trapped piece out from underneath me.

"BELLA!" Alice screamed suddenly, bolting toward me, a magazine in hand.

"What?!" I asked, staring up at her with, I'm sure, a startled demeanour.

"LOOK!" she cried, stabbing one of the pages with her finger. "KELLAN LUTZ!"

I grabbed the corner of the magazine to steady it. "Quit moving around so much!" I giggled.

Alice obeyed, her body quaking with suppressed excitement.

"Who's Kellan Lutz?" Edward asked, leaning over.

"No one." I said, pressing the magazine page against my stomach.

He stared at me with knit eyebrows.

I smiled innocently, and then bowed my head, pulling the magazine maybe an inch away from my body so I could peek at the page. Then I burst out laughing.

"Ohhh my Goooodddd!" I squealed through my hysteria, doubling over.

Alice was now in the chair beside me, unable to hold back her laughter either.

"He's a _kitty_!" I cried, gesturing to the cat ears atop his head and the face painted whiskers across his cheeks.

"LEMME SEE!" Edward whined quite childishly.

"No! You can't _handle_ the truth!" I quoted, still laughing.

"Yes I can!" Edward protested.

I rolled my eyes. "Ohh kay…" I said, "You can see the picture…. IF YOU CAN CATCH IT!" I then tossed it through the air.

"OWW!" Lauren cried.

I gasped, clapping my hands over my mouth when the corner of the magazine hit her in the side of the head. When she looked our way I stabbed my finger Edward's way, while Alice did the same.

"OW, EDWARD!" Lauren screamed at him.

"What?!" he asked, turning toward me and Lila. I quickly dropped my finger in my lap and stared straight ahead, moulding my face into composure.

"What's—"

"Eric Yorkie?" said a doctor, stepping into the waiting room, "I can see you now. Just step through this door," he instructed him, gesturing to the first door on the right. "I'm just going to warn you that this may take some time," he then said, turning toward us.

I bit down on my bottom lip, my eyes involuntarily shifting to the clock on the wall. It was almost three o' clock. Our photo session had started at 2:30.

"Um… okay," I started to confirm, but Eric cut me off.

He stepped back towards us. "You all go. I don't want you guys to miss this. It's an important time of your lives. I'll just… y'know, Photoshop my face in later," he said with a slight smirk.

I grinned. Then I jumped up to go and hug him. "I don't doubt you could," I laughed, looping my arms around his neck.

Then we all filed back into the parking lot, climbing into the limo.

It began to rain in the middle of the pictures, and we took refuge beneath the Caterpillar tent. At least we got a sufficient amount taken.

"Well, this sucks," Angela observed, shaking out her wet hands.

Alice sighed. "Well, Bella and Edward cast bad luck upon themselves when they contacted each other today. That's what you get," she said, turning towards me.

"When you let your heart win!" I cried in her face.

Rosalie, Lauren and Angela rolled their eyes while Alice and I burst into the chorus of Paramore's song for the second time that day.

Jessica's shriek cut us off though. "MIKKEEE!" she screamed like a stuck pig as he slung her over his shoulder. "STOOOOP!" she begged as he leaped out from under the awning, into the pouring rain. "YOU'RE GONNA RUIN MY HAIR! AND MY MAKE UP! AND MY DRESS!"

I laughed as Mike plunked his hat over her curls.

"NOO!" she shrieked. She yanked it off and whipped it to the ground, beginning to kick, trying to free herself from the fireman-esque embrace. Jess caught him in the stomach with her knee and he buckled over, gasping for air.

Jessica's feet luckily made purchase with the ground and she stood up tall and confident, completely oblivious to the fact that the rain was dripping like icicles down her back and her deep brown suede heels were being ruined.

"That's what you get," she told him.

"When you let your heart win," I muttered in Alice's ear.

She giggled softly in response.

We arrived in front of the Wainwright Hotel just as a yellow taxi pulled up. Eric emerged from the front seat, grinning beneath the gauze over his nose.

"What did the doctor say?" I asked, rushing toward him, ignoring the fact that the trail of my dress was dragging along behind me, gathering dirt.

Jessica squeaked as she rushed behind me, gathering the white silk in her hands, lifting it off the floor.

Eric shrugged, his mouth twisting. "He thinks I have a body well enough for porn,"

I felt my mouth gape and my eyes widen. "_What_? He _actually_ said that?"

Eric laughed. "No, silly girl!" he cried, socking me gently on the arm.

"Phew!" I sighed dramatically, wiping my fingers over my forehead.

"Ready to go inside?" Edward asked, approaching us along with the rest of the wedding party then.

"Yeah." I said, peering up through the sun—set low in the sky—at the quaint, old hotel.

As of now, everyone had been ushered into the ball room to await our arrival. Before, as we were getting our pictures taken, the children had been allowed to roam about the old village --on the promise that they didn't dirty their clothes—while the adults dallied in the tavern.

It was only spitting, but we rushed up the porch steps anyway. Besides, it wouldn't be raining much longer. The sun was showing through the clouds, and most of the rain clouds had gathered on one side of the sky.

The roar of the chatting guests about overwhelmed me when we stepped through the front doors. We were in the front of the hotel, and everyone was in the ballroom, so no one could see us.

"Attention, please," a male voice called from the podium. I recognized it as my brother. "Hello?"

The guests ignored them.

"YO!" Jasper, Edward's older brother yelled into the microphone. Everything went abruptly silent and I couldn't help but giggle.

"Thank you, everyone. This just shows how much you love my side of the family," Jordan joked. "The wedding party is going to enter the room in a moment, and we'd like you to keep your pants on. Also, we have to go over a few regulations because the staff of the hotel is—"

"Making sure the well-being of the old hotel stays in tact." Jasper interrupted. "One. The bathrooms are right over there, the men's on the left and the women's on the right. If the lines are too long, you can go upstairs. The washrooms are right over these ones here. But, could you please not _run_ upstairs? This roof is made of tin and is really quite disturbing to people down here…"

"Can I change into my jeans now?" Angela begged from somewhere behind me.

"Angela" Alice and Rosalie groaned.

"What?" she asked, blushing. "This dress is really uncomfortable."

I planted my hand on my hip, cocking a freshly waxed—not necessarily by choice—eyebrow at her.

"No!" she rushed, blushing even brighter. "I meant because it's wet, and… like…" she cut herself off, sighing. "You _know_ how much I hate wearing dresses. If I hadn't been a bridesmaid, I probably would have worn jeans, you know that," she told me.

I couldn't help smiling. No one knew how right she actually was. "Yeah. Well, you'll just have to sit through dinner like this. But then you're free to be comfortable, kay?" I told her.

Angela sighed, giving in and nodded. "Alright," she said.

"Bella!" a familiar voice said from behind me. I turned to see Rachel in the ballroom doorway. Behind her, Edward and my brothers were still lecturing the crowd.

"Rache!" I squealed subduely, rushing toward her. I nearly tackled her with my hug. I grinned, pulling away. "I like your dress," I complimented her. The sea-foam, mid-thigh length, thick strapped dress popped against her fair skin, brightening her cobalt blue eyes. Her buttery hair had been styled into waves which drifted down her back like a beautiful sunshine river, and her cheeks were rosy with blush.

"I like _yours_!" she returned, spinning me. "It's so _pretty_!"

I giggled. "Thanks. Hey, how'd you get out here? Aren't you supposed to be in there?" I asked, nodding toward the ballroom.

Rachel nodded sheepishly. "Yeah, but I snuck out," she admitted.

"What'd you do? Crawl under the tables? Those guys have got eyes like a hawk." I joked.

Rachel laughed. "Yeah, that's what I did."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "Well, you'd better get back in there. We're gonna be called in soon," I told her, leaning in for one more hug.

"Okay. You look really pretty," she said again, and then turned and rushed back into the ballroom.

When I turned back to the groupies they were laughing hysterically. Pressed up in the vintage phone booth were Emmett and Eric. Eric's palms were pressed to the glass, and his face was contorted in a horror-struck facial expression. He was obviously terrified of getting his nose bumped.

"Yes, yes," Emmett's muffled voice seeped through the glass. He was on the phone, and he was pretending to be oh so very poised. He pretended to tug on his moustache. "That's right,"

"So, now, without further a due, I present to you, the best man and maid of honour!" Jasper called.

"Emmett!" Rosalie snapped, trying to yank open the door. "We have to go in!"

"Emmett Cullen and Rosalie Hale!"

"EMMETT!" Rosalie barked in a hushed tone. "Come _on_!"

"Emmett! Rose!"

Emmett finally stumbled from the booth, sending Eric flying into the glass face first.

His scream of terror inevitably reached the guests' ears. It about blew my ear drums.

Rosalie rolled her eyes as Emmett grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward the ballroom.

The thump of fingers against the microphone and the screech of it in protest to Emmett's prodding interrupted the dining of the wedding guests. I looked up to see him standing at the podium grinning like a Cheshire cat. Obviously, he was willing to get peoples' attention—if it was in a good way or not.

"Hello!" he exclaimed to the room. "I'm gonna start the speeches," he told us then.

"Uh oh," Edward and I both conveniently muttered under our breaths.

"Let's see…" he was saying as he patted his pockets and rummaged through his jacket. "Where did I put that speech?" He came up with nothing. "Oh well. I guess I'll improvise," he said nonchalantly.

I couldn't resist slamming my forehead into my folded arms on the table.

"Hmm, okay. So… I've been friends with Edward since 6th grade, and I've been with him through just about everything. Including Bella…" I shot him a death glare that he didn't quite intercept. "Man, they've been through a lot. Like the time in eighth grade when they tried out dating… I believe Edward asked her out over MSN…" I bit my lip, sneaking a side glance at Edward's face. His elbows were rested on the table, the sleeves of his shirt pushed up to his elbows. His face was buried in his hands, but I could make out the blush that stained his cheeks. "How many days did it take you to answer him, Belly?" he asked, turning toward me. God, he knew how much I hated that nickname. "A week? Or was it two?"

I rolled my eyes.

"It was three days, dummy!" Someone called from the crowd.

Emmett held his hands up in surrender. "Now, now. No need for discrimination against the sexy people in this room… Let's move onto another subject. Edward, did you by chance take any dance lessons before this night? Because, I remember this one time…"

"Oh, crap," I heard him whisper from beside me.

"I might even still have the proof," Emmett was saying, "saved in the hard drive of my computer. Anyway, our girlfriends at that time wanted us to make a video of us lip syncing and dancing to the Pokémon theme song."

I heard the laughter slip through my lips at the memory. I'd accidentally stumbled across the video on YouTube.

"Let's just say, Edward here wasn't so enthusiastic about it." Emmett shot him a dark look, which Edward returned with a patronizing 'get on with it' glare. "Hm… not funny enough. Let's move onto some high school parties."

Edward's eyes widened, and this time in true fear.

"See, he was trying to find his girlfriend. And he couldn't find her _anywhere_. Wanna know why he was trying to find his girlfriend?"

"No," Edward muttered.

This was Rosalie's cue. She stood up from the head table and made her way toward the podium.

"C'mon. Someone guess."

No one did.

"Okay, I'll tell you. Edward and I had made a bet that night. He was set on finding his girlfriend, because that night was the night he was going to lose--"

Rosalie slapped her palm over Emmett's mouth, grinning beautifully at the crowd. "Isn't he hilarious?" she asked. Hip checking him out of her way, she took over the podium.

"Hey!" Emmett began to protest, but the applause of the guests drowned him out.

"Isabella Marie Swan, which is kinda unique because she has a best friend named Marie… and that, is Bella's middle name. Did u know I have two baby cousins with the names Isabella and Angela… they are sisters… Which is awesome because Bella has another best friend named Angela! Creepy eh? But enough about my cousins… let's focus on Bella this evening, shall we? I remember meeting her in grade 7 at MPS. Time sure flies eh? Seems like just last week we had our first Chinese food in a box and Ben and Jerry's night in. That's was our very first taste of college life, and we continued to have our weekly Ben and Jerry's night in all through college as we both went to the same university… her major in creative writing and mine in acting. Although our bad eating habits started early on, so did our friendship. Let me just warn you now, this may get quite sappy. Now where was I, grade seven? I met Bella through…"

The lights shone golden and soft as Edward led me onto the dance floor for our first dance as "May I" by Trading Yesterday flowed through the speakers. His arms were like protective, shielding walls around me, and I rested my head to his shoulder, closing my eyes. Encaging me in the darkness in his arms swelled my heart to an overwhelming feeling. I felt so safe, so loved, right here, right now.

I felt his lips press to my forehead just beneath my hair line.

"Are you surprised we made it this far?" he mumbled, pressing his cheek to the top of my head.

"Not at all," I replied, my voice far away as if I were asleep.

We swayed as if we were on a boat to the song. I didn't lift my head to better see the camera flashes. I didn't open my eyes to take in the expressions on my parents' faces or Edward's. I already knew how it looked, anyway.

"I love you," he muttered simply. It still surprised me to that day to hear those three words. It sent my heart into splutters, and stretched a smile across my cheeks, no matter how much I didn't want it to.

"That's why we're here," I said, finally ducking out from underneath his chin to gaze into his face. I stretched up to kiss him. Cameras flashed feverishly.

His ring burned through the gossamer layers of silk, making its way to my bare flesh, burning its promise into me—forever held—unbreakable.


	4. Fun and Games

**A/N: Slowly but steadily I am gaining alerts. I'm so excited =] Thank you for the slight reviews I'm getting. It's not a lot, but, as I always say, little things are better than nothing.**

**Updates are happening quickly, I know. But, to tell you the truth, I have the whole story written out, so updates might be speeding up. 1, because of my excitement, and 2, because of my very little preservation of self-control =P**

**--**

"I know you've probably heard it before, but you look so beautiful," Makenna told me.

I grinned. "Yeah, about a million times, but thanks," I told her, leaning in to hug her. Makenna was Renee's cousin. Edward and I were making our rounds to all the different tables, visiting our family members.

"Congratulations, though. You finally got him, eh?" she said, gazing across the dance floor at Edward.

"Sugar Sugar" was blasting from the speakers and the majority of the dance floor was being taken over by younger cousins.

I laughed.

"After all that time."

I sighed. "Yep," I told her, unable to bring myself to tear my eyes away from his smiling face, "I did."

The music abruptly dissipated and the DJ's voice came over the speakers. "Okay, we're going to play a little game," he announced, "So could we please clear off the dance floor and, Bella? Edward? Would you please join me out here?" he asked, searching the crowd from behind the DJ booth.

I rose from the chair. "That's me," I said, taking a sip of my water. "I'll talk to you guys later," I said, smiling at the table. "Thanks so much for coming!" I abandoned my water bottle on a table as I passed and stepped out onto the dance floor at almost the exact same time Edward did.

"Well!" I exclaimed as he sidled up to me. "Fancy meeting you here, cowboy!"

He laughed. "What a surprise!" he returned, chuckling in amusement.

"Okay, you two," the DJ was saying, "get your butts into those chairs."

In the middle of the dance floor were two chairs, back to back. Edward took one and I took the other. "You're gonna need to take off your shoes for this. I hope neither of you have stinky feet," he joked.

The crowd laughed, and for the first time I realized that we had their captive attention.

I removed my shoes, and handed one over my shoulder to Edward while he did the same. I held the two in my lap, taking a brief sniff of his shoe. It didn't smell so bad, but I put on a funny face just to get a laugh.

"Now, let's really see who knows the other better. I'm going to read off some questions. If, Bella, for example, you think the answer belongs to Skyler, then hold up his shoe. If you think it belongs to you, hold up yours, okay?"

I nodded, to let him know that I understood.

"Alrightie, then!" he called out. "Let's get started."

I shifted in my chair excitedly.

"Who made the first move?" The DJ read off of a sheet in his hand.

Immediately I raised Edward's shoe over my head.

There were a couple expected chuckles from the crowd. I craned my neck back to see whose shoe Edward held up. His, of course.

"Next question," The DJ said, "Who was the cutest baby?"

I bit my lip, stuck in a rut. I didn't want to sound conceited. In the end, I decided to hold up both shoes.

"Who's the better cook?"

I raised Edward's shoe so fast that it almost flung out of my hand.

"Who is a better dancer?"

Definetely not me. Up went Edward's shoe.

"Who is a bigger tipper at restuaraunts?"

"Um," I said to myself, gnawing on my lip. I raised my eyebrows questionably when I held up my own shoe.

"Who is the bigger complainer?"

I lifted my shoe so quickly into the air that I almost caused myself to leap from the chair.

A few people laughed at my enthusiasm.

"Who will most likely load the dishwasher?"

With a pout, I rose my shoe.

Laughter ensued, so I checked over my shoulder. Sure enough, Edward was holding his shoe up.

"You're just saying that to sound polite," I murmered in his ear.

He only grinned.

"Who is the biggest channel surfer?"

I rose Edward's shoe with a disapproving frown.

"Who is in control of the remote control?"

When I raised my shoe above my head, laughter burst from the crowd. Again, I craned my neck to see his shoe raised.

"Uh oh," The DJ jokingly fretted, "We've got a little competition going on here."

"Who wears the pants in the relationship?"

I actually began laughing. I didn't raise a shoe, because I simply didn't know.

"Who always has the last word in an argument?"

I rose my shoe high and proudly above my head. The audience began to laugh again when Edward raised his own shoe.

"Who talks more about their day at work?"

Both Edward and I raised his shoe.

"Who is late for 'everything'?"

Neither of us rose a shoe. As far as I knew, we were hardly ever late for anything.

"Who spends the most time in the bathroom?"

As to be expected, both of us rose my shoe.

"Who is more likely to use the last sheet of toilet paper and not refill it?"

Sheepishly, I rose my own shoe.

"Who makes a bigger mess around the house?"

Again, I rose my own shoe.

"Who is a better driver?"

I rose Edward's shoe, and he rose mine.

"Awe, thanks," I said to him, "you're so generous."

"Who spends more time on the internet?"

"ME!" I squealed, hoisting my shoe into the air.

"Who is more romantic?"

Both of us rose our shoes, causing laughter to erupt far back into the crowds.

"Who said 'I Love You' first?"

"Oh God," I whispered to myself, "I don't know…"

I tipped my head back to see what Edward said, and saw his shoe in the air, so I rose his too, just so there was no argument I couldn't back up.

"Who will tell the other 'I Love You' most each day?"

To that, I rose both of our shoes.

"Who is most likely the one to apologize after a disagreement?"

I immediately rose Edward's shoe. But he rose mine.

I rolled my eyes.

"Who is the better kisser?"

I rose his shoe, but when I glanced back—urged by the chorus of 'awww's'-- I saw he was holding up my shoe. I grinned, unable to contain it.

"Who will be in charge of taking out the trash?"

I lifted Edward's shoe, and people laughed when he sheepishly lifted his—like a good boy. I laughed.

"If you haven't already, who will be the first one to pass gas in front of the other?"

I giggled and then hoisted his shoe into the air.

"You're just saying that because you think men are grosser than girls," Edward murmured over his shoulder.

"Because they are," I returned, grinning.

"Who complains more about their job?"

I raised Edward's shoe, laughing. When I said he talked more about his job, I meant complaining.

"Who's idea was the first date?"

I groaned, remembering it and rose Edward's shoe above my head. Bowling. Not such a good idea with a klutz like me. I think I ended up breaking my wrist.

"Who initiated the first kiss?"

I rose my shoe into the air and then turned around to kiss Edward.

The sky was dark now, and the stars interrupted the brilliant blackness, covering it in diamonds. Any other night I would be jealous of them—so aloof and admired, but tonight, I was perfectly fine with their flaunting flair. The summer breeze was just cool enough and it gently teased the hair which had managed to free itself from my up do. I ran my fingers across the white petal of a moon flower, which was beginning to wilt.

"There you are," I heard a voice fill the silent night and I jumped, twisting rapidly toward where it came from.

Edward stood by the door, facing me. The gel in his hair had seemed to melt. The caramel locks fell in his eyes. The sleeves of his ivory button down were shoved to his elbows, and the top two buttons were undone.

"I had to get out of there," I informed him, gesturing toward the side of the hotel. "It's suffocating."

He smirked, making his way over to me. "That's what comes with a day like this," he reminded me gently.

I smiled wistfully, turning my gaze back to the stars.

Edward lowered himself onto the bench beside me. "I got your note," he said.

I grinned, focusing on him now.  
He unfolded the small piece of paper, turning it toward me.

"Just saying hi," I quoted myself.

He grinned.

Then I sighed, reaching for his hand, rubbing my thumb over the silver wedding band situated on his finger.

I lifted my gaze to his face, his green eyes scorching a hole in my head. Goosebumps crawled over my skin—but the good kind—and my heart began to echo its original beats. His fingers touched my cheek lovingly.

"GUYS!" Rosalie cried, bursting out onto the hotel porch.

I twisted away from Edward to look at her.

"You _have_ to see this!"

_This_ was a dance off between Angela and Eric.

"Shake It" by Metro Station was blasting through the speakers. A crowd had formed around the dance floor and Edward and I squirmed our way through the people—it helped that they made room for us—to see what was going on.

Eric was bustin' a move, if that was what you could call it, while Angela stood by, arms crossed, an amused look on her face.

Edward snickered, and I shoved him playfully, knowing what he was thinking.

He began to shake his hand and bounce around in a poor imitation of one of the dance moves my group had made up for our dance in gym in grade nine.

"Stop!" I laughed.

Eric gestured to Angela, and she gladly moved in front of him, just sucking up the attention like it was a strawberry milkshake. She began in an innocent bounce, jutting her fists out in front of her, and Eric smirked, clearly thinking he was gong to win.

But then she surprised us all by whipping her full attack on the floor. I think I actually took a step back.

Eric looked slightly dumbfounded as she gestured to him, but he managed to compose himself and then took over. Not as good as Angela, but pretty darn good, I had to admit.

Back and forth, taking turns, Angela and Eric competed till both had shiny foreheads. As the song ended, everyone started to chant Angela's name to show she was the clear victor of the dance off.

"WATCH OUT!" Emmett called, bursting through Edward and me, onto the dance floor.

"What Them Girls Like" had just started, and he began to break dance.

I giggled, and then grabbed Edward's hand, tugging him toward the dance floor.

"C'mon!" I said.

"What?" he asked, clearly confused, pulling back on my grasp.

"Come _on_!" I insisted, tugging harder.

It took the rest of the song to convince him to join the competition—which wasn't so much of a competition anymore—and by the time we joined Angela, Eric and Emmett, "STARSTRUKK" by 3OH!3 was playing.

Now _that_ is a fun song to dance to…

Right in the middle of "We Like to Party", much to Alice's and my protest, the music cut off.

"Sorry about that, guys," the DJ called, "but it's time to go ahead with the traditions of the wedding. Y'know, garter and bouquet toss,"

I felt my cheeks flood with blood, and my heart explode into a frantic sprint. My hands slicked with clamminess. Instinctively, I grabbed Alice's arm so tight she had to slap me so I would let go.

The chair was brought out into the middle of the dance floor, and the spotlight turned on it. It was like nearing lava, though. So hot and uncomfortable, I mentally smacked myself on choosing to go through with the tradition.

"Uh…" was the only thing I could think of to say. I shrunk back into the crowd, but someone's hands pressed to the small of my back, blocking my escape.

"Go!" Rosalie ordered, shoving me into the circle of people.

I stared back at her wide-eyed, like a deer in the headlights, silently begging her not to make me.

Edward's hand touched mine and I involuntarily jumped back. He blinked in my face, clearly nervous himself.

"Why did we choose to do this?" I whispered in his ear as we neared the chair together—slowly.

"Hurry up!" a voice whined from the crowd—probably Emmett.

I whipped my head in the direction of where the voice came from. Catching sight of him, I locked his gaze with mine and promptly stuck my tongue out at him. Then I quickly drew it back, thinking of a fool proof plan. Through the foggy panic in my brain, it drew away like a child's fingers pulling cotton candy. Instead of sticking my tongue out at him at that moment, I grinned widely at him.

He frowned in confusion.

I turned back to Edward, fighting to keep the worried look on my face. If I couldn't do this, the whole plan would blow up.

He nodded toward the chair, but I held back. It was so uncomfortable that I knew Edward wouldn't force me. He wasn't that type of guy. I had to do it if I was comfortable with it. That was his motto for me.

"For the love of all that is holy, hurry up!" Emmett ordered. "Or am I gonna have to shove you in that chair myself?"

_That wouldn't be such a bad idea, actually,_ I said in my mind. _Him getting closer…_ To make it clear that he should indeed join us on the dance floor, I took a step back, away from the chair. Edward stood staring at me, face growing redder by the minute. Either he was blushing or it was the lights.

Emmett's hands clapped around my upper arms and he shoved me toward the chair. Spinning me around, he plopped me down while Jasper tied a blind fold around Edward's eyes.

I bit my lip so I wouldn't start laughing as Jasper began to spin Edward.

I leapt out of the chair too quickly for Emmett to do anything.

"Sit down," I ordered.

"What?" he asked, dark eyes sparkling half at my devious behaviour, half in confusion.

"Sit!" I hissed, never so thankful for such loud, promiscuous music. I glanced over my shoulder as Edward, now at a crawl, neared us. I shoved Emmett toward the chair.

"No! That's disgusting!" he protested.

I rolled my eyes. "Coming from you? Come on. That's a joke." I glanced over my shoulder again, realizing that Edward was now a foot away from us. "Hurry up!"

Edward, completely oblivious as to what was going on, kept crawling toward us.

I yanked the chair up by the back, retreated a few steps so we were farther away. "Hurry!" I giggled, slapping his arm.

"I'll do it!" a voice hissed in my ear. I turned to see Jordan standing there, nearly a foot taller than me now.

"Thank you." I muttered.

Edward, thankfully, did not hear any of this exchange over the music.

Working together, Jordan and I rolled his pants up to the knee and then hurried over to the chair. He sat down, and I lifted my dress over his knees.

The crowd was tittering, trying to suppress their laughter.

I bit my lip so hard I swore I tasted blood when Edward approached us, trying not to laugh.

His hand reached up, making purchase with the silk of my dress. Perfect. So far, so good.

I reached a hand over, so that when I grabbed his hand, it would feel like I was actually sitting there, and directed it to Jordan's shin.

Edward actually froze when he felt the hair there.

I squeezed my eyes shut, shaking with suppressed laughter.

The whole crowd was roaring now, and Edward retreated, rocking back on his knees, clearly sensing something was wrong.

Like two ninjas, my brother and I quickly switched places. Jordan dove behind me so Edward wouldn't see that his pants were rolled up.

When the blindfold came off, Edward stared up at me. I grinned back innocently.

"What? Don't you like au natural?"

Edward didn't know what to say. His lips parted, and his cheeks flushed.

I burst out laughing, doubling over on myself. Jordan stepped out from behind the chair, sticking out a hairy, bare leg.

Then I tugged up the hem of my dress to reveal my smooth, _hairless_ shin.

Edward ducked his head in his hands, shoulders shaking with laughter.

What a surprise. Emmett caught the garter when Edward flicked it. Now I knew where to direct my bouquet. Not that I didn't beforehand…

"Kay, ladies, please join the bride on the dance floor to catch the bouquet!"

All of my bridesmaids, most of my cousins, and friends hurried into a clump in front of me.

I kicked off my shoes, and climbed onto the chair I had just been sitting in, back toward the girls.

Cindy Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" blasted through the speakers, and I began to sway to the music atop the chair.

I glanced over my shoulder at the wild frenzy of women behind me, scoping out my aim. Toward the back I found her, barefoot. That was good. She'd be faster. Now only if I could throw far enough.

Edward had taught me how to shoot a basketball from half court in high school, now only if I could do it backwards.

I turned my attention toward the DJ.

"Ready?" he said,

"Three," I counted with him, "two, one!" I flung the bouquet as hard as I could over my head, and then spun around, watching it fly through the air. It landed, as I had wanted, behind the women, and they all rushed toward it.

But, Rosalie, who had been in the very back got to it first. She jumped up and down in excitement, squealing happily.

The wedding ended too soon, and I found myself feeling sad as the DJ wrapped it up. Some freak-o drunken guests had convinced Emmett to loop my garter belt around his head, and he was stumbling around, without a single doubt clearly absolutely trashed. In the last few minutes of the party, I saw him stumble outside.

Saying goodbye took forever, but finally all who was left in the hotel were my parents, and the wedding party.

I didn't know where Rosalie was at the moment. Probably out back making out with Emmett, disregarding her responsibilities, as usual. I'd caught them feeling each other up earlier in the night. I smiled in spite of my friend.

"HEY, BELLA!" Jasper called from one of the tables. "WATCH THIS!" he called out excitedly, leaning back as Eric slowly tipped a bottle of tequila toward his lips, snickering like Evil Kinevil. And of course, we could always depend on Jasper to keep the party going after it was over or not.

I groaned, dropping my face into my hands, trying to hide my amused grin.

The clean-up crew had ditched, so it was up to us to clean up the mess. Alice and Jess were working together to pick up the strewed garbage. They both wore bright yellow cleaning gloves, holding green garbage bags.

"HEY, BELLA!" a male voice said in my ear and I felt arms wrap around me.

I shrieked in fright, knowing for a fact that it wasn't Edward. My elbow jutted backward, into his stomach. I heard the guy grunt, and I stomped on his foot—unfortunately barefoot. Turning around, I drew my fist back. Just as I let it smack forward, he brought up his hand and our knuckles connected.

"OWW!" Jake screamed, dropping onto the floor, cradling his fist in one hand, while crouching toward his foot. "Your _ring_! Ow! Look what you did to me, you crazy girl!" he cried, holding up his hand. There was a slight nick in his knuckle.

"Oh my God! Jake!" I cried, dropping to the floor beside him. "Are you okay?" I asked, laughing.

"No!" he cried, leering at me. Then he laughed and I joined in. Wow… what a strange pair. But I guess it had always been like that. Ever since becoming friends in grade eight, Jake and I joked around relentlessly… He'd been the one who was always there when I'd been going through my troubles with Edward—to hold me when I wanted to cry, to make me laugh when I needed it, but didn't nessicarily want to. Jake was, without a doubt, my best friends. Not that I would ever reveal that to any of the girls…

"Why are you on the floor?" I heard Edward ask. He reached down to pull me to my feet and I accepted.

"Thanks." I said.

Edward then grabbed Jake's uninjured hand and pulled him to his feet.

"Sorry for beating you up, Jake," I apologized genuinely.

Jake nodded my way, and then said to Edward, "Don't freak her out. She'll seriously beat the crap out of you."

Edward laughed. "I'll take that into account," he promised him, wrapping his arm about my waist.

"Yooo, Jakey, muh man!!" Jasper greeted him, smacking his hand. Jake grimaced.

I leaned my head on Edward's shoulder. "What time is it?" I asked.

"Almost midnight," Edward answered almost right away.

"How do you know?" I demanded.

Edward pointed to the clock on the wall across from us.

"Oh," I muttered, laughing. "Silly me." I broke into giggles.

"How much have you had to drink?" Edward asked in all seriousness.

"Not much." I told him, sobering up immediately.

He rolled his eyes grinning.

"But I have one thing to tell you."

"What's that?" he asked, bending down to better hear me.

I closed the tiny gap between us and touched my lips to his. "I love you," I whispered against his cheek.

His lips left a burning trail up my jaw toward my ear.

"That's why we're here."


	5. Not The Night You Expected

A/N: God, my updates are so random. But you guys love it, don't you? Ugh, I just went back to school today after winter break. Sadface. So, I won't be online a lot now, and my updates will probably be less frequent because I will be studying my ass off. Now I'm gonna go mope. Enjoy your mother effin' chapter =[ (KIDDING! I LOVE YOU!)

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The humid midnight air washed in through the open window of Edward's silver Volvo—sleek, mysterious and panther-like as it whipped nearly silently along the empty highway.

I propped my bare feet on the dashboard, bumping the back of my head against the seat, listening to the soothing jazz number playing on the radio. Edward was silent beside me as he focused on the road.

I reached toward my foot with one hand to pick at the glittery gold polish, chipping only after twelve hours of wear. The silver band of the ring glinted in the white wash of the moonlight filtering in on us.

The road lit up before us and the glare only got brighter as another car approached us. It zipped by and then we were alone again.

I yawned widely, slapping my palm over my mouth to try to hide it. But it was a hard feat. I'd been up since seven A.M. the night before and it was now four o' clock in the morning.

"Tired?" Edward's voice was husky and slightly scratchy after so little use during the drive.

I'd changed into something a little more comfortable after the reception and then we had started on our way to Banff for our honeymoon.

"A little," I admitted, my voice meagre on its own accord. Speaking loudly after so many hours of quiet seemed wrong.

"You should sleep," he told me, reaching over to stroke my cheek with the back of his hand.

I sighed, shuddering convulsively as goose bumps manifested my skin—again, in a good way. "Maybe," I contemplated, biting back another yawn. I rested my head against the window frame, the wind cool against my cheeks, but sat upright again when I felt my bag vibrate at my feet. I reached down to retrieve my phone.

**ALICE: **Yo, yo, yo homie gee. Sup in da cribbb?

I sighed, smiling a little and bowed my head to type my reply.

**BELLA: **shouldn't u b sleeping?

**ALICE: **too much caffeine. Opted 4 it instedd of champagne.

I shook my head from side to side, smiling in spite of Alice. Always the one thinking she was doing the better thing and then, instead, her plans backfiring at her.

I was about to answer her, but my phone suddenly died. I tossed it back in my bag.

"Who was that?" Edward wanted to know from the driver's seat.

"Alice," I told him, returning to my former position, this time curling my knees to my chest.

I saw him nod out of my peripheral vision. "What'd she want?"

"To know what was up in da crib." I replied, giggling a bit to myself.

Edward began to smile, but then the car jerked violently. It was only for an instant and then was smoothly traveling again.

"What was that?" I asked.

Edward shrugged, clearly confused himself. "I don't know," he said and then cursed.

"What?"

"We're almost out of gas."

"Seriously?" I demanded, "But we only got gas, like…" I trailed off, forgetting how long ago we'd actually filled up.

"We haven't had any gas since we left. We haven't filled up while we were on the road. I did that before, and only had half a tank. I forgot to fill up again…"

"Oh no," I groaned. "The car's gonna fail on the side of the road and then we're both gonna die," I predicted morosely.

Edward laughed. "I highly doubt that will happen, love," he contradicted.

I opened my mouth to talk, but was cut off when I jerked in my seat. A pitiful squeak exited my throat. "We're gonna die," I hissed, and I guessed he wouldn't hear me over the wind whistling in through the windows.

He shot me a sideways glance, proving my thoughts wrong. "Bella, please, stop being so melodramatic."

"I can't help myself!" I insisted, staring at him, "This car is going to die, and then we'll be stuck on the side of the road, forced to huddle in the back for warmth, and no help will come, and then we won't have any food so we'll, like, starve to death. And then a freak storm will come, and we'll have forgotten to close the windows, so our car will flood and somehow will be tipped off balance, topple off the bridge into the ocean. Our bodies will be washed out to sea, and the search and rescue dudes will never find us, and we will forever be doomed to the black depths of—"

"Whoa!" he cried in an attempt to slow things down. "That will _not_ happen. The worst that will happen is that we run out of gas before we reach another gas station." But even as he said the words, the car began to coast—slower and slower until we rested in a complete stand-still, right smack in the center of the highway.

After many failed attempts to restart the car, Edward glanced sheepishly toward me. I twisted my body so I was facing him, folding my arms across my chest and cocked one eyebrow at him.

"What were you saying, now?"

Edward grinned sheepishly, and then turned to get out the car. I followed suit, wrapping my arms around myself.

Silently, he moved around to the front of the car and lifted the hood, emanating a cloud of smoke into the night air like a backfiring engine at a racetrack.

I coughed, waving the air. "Oh, great," I said rolling my eyes, "this is just perfect. We're not even on our honeymoon yet and the problems are starting. Something always has to go wrong, right?"

Edward shot me a patronizing grin. "Why don't you call a tow truck?"

"I can't," I replied, "my phone died."

He frowned, and then bent to further examine the engine of the car. "Um, I think it's pretty much toast."

"No!" I said sarcastically.

He turned back to me, irking his eyebrow. "What do you suggest we do?"

"I don't know," I said, shrugging. "I thought you were the expert on cars…"

Edward sighed, raking his fingers through his already messy hair. He slumped against the car, kicking at the pavement.

I walked a few feet up the road, peering into the black for any signs of civilization. I caught site of lights awhile off. It wouldn't be too far to walk. I voiced my suggestions to Edward. After we were able to shove the car onto the shoulder of the highway, we retrieved our bags from the trunk and began our trek toward the light.

The light turned out to be a hotel.

It always surprised me how lively hotels were, even though it was three in the morning. There were at least three people behind the desk, and there was a young couple making out in one of those chairs you see in the middle of the mall, but are more like a couch because they're so big.

"Can I help you?" a woman who seemed to be thirty-something asked from the end of the counter. Her frizzy red hair was pulled back into a ponytail, but the baby hairs on the front of her hairline stuck up around her face.

Edward ventured toward the women, dropping the bags by his feet. "Yeah. Our car," he gestured toward the plate-glass doors with his thumb, "broke down a few miles down. Are there any available rooms?"

The woman's eyes flickered to my face and then back to Edward's. "Um, yes, I think so. I'll just make sure," she told us, turning her attention to the computer for a moment. Then she looked back up. "Can I have your name?"

"Edward Cullen," he explained.

After he'd filled out all of the standard information, the woman handed us a pamphlet which held two room key cards, threw us a fleeting smile, and then turned back to the other people manning the sign in.

Edward and I found the elevators, and then stepped inside. The golden doors slid shut, and I saw a reflection of myself in the doors. My hair was wild, having escaped its ponytail, and my cheeks were flushed in exertion from the long trek. A trace of lip gloss was left behind on my lips, but I didn't make a move to reapply it.

I set my suitcase on the floor, slumping against the mirrored wall of the elevator, smoothing my hair back with my hands.

Moments later, the elevator dinged, announcing our arrival to the fourth floor. Edward and I made our way down the hallway, and he slid the card into the lock, pulling it out. It flashed red, which meant it didn't work. He repeated the process three more times before I laughed.

"Here," I said, laying my hand on his, "let me do it."

"No, I got it," he assured me, sliding the key in again.

"Okay," I said, stepping back.

He pulled it out again, but it only flashed red. He sighed in frustration.

I laughed. "Edward, come on. I'll do it."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!"

"_Yes!_" I hip checked him out of the way, plucking the card from his finger tips in the same instant.

"Hey!" he cried out in protest. "Give that back!" he dove toward me, and I couldn't hold back the unnecessary—not to mention, loud—screech.

"NO!" I cried, whipping the key out of reach. "I can _do_ it!"

"I said that, and you stole it from me!"

"It's _our_ hotel room!" I laughed, dodging out of the loop his arms tried to make around my waist.

"So? People are gonna think I'm incapable!"

"I'm the only one here!"

The clearing of a throat down the hall made it suddenly clear that I was, in fact, _not_ the only person there. Our heads snapped toward the sound in the same instant, my hand—and the card still grasped—dropping to my side.

"Do you think you could quiet it down?" a rugged man gruffly asked. He wore a pair of dark blue plaid pajama bottoms, and a baby fussed in his arms. He glared at us, paying no mind to the child in his arms.

A blond woman squeezed between him and the doorjamb to take the baby from him. She cradled it to her chest, shushing soothingly in its ear.

"We're sorry," Edward apologized.

"Yeah," the man snapped as his obvious wife scooted back into the hotel room with the baby, "my family and I are trying to get some sleep here. Do you mind keeping it down?"

"We'll be quiet, sir. Sorry," Edward muttered, obviously chagrined.

I turned toward the door awkwardly, unlocked the door and propped it open. I managed to drag in our entire suitcase and sit on the bed before the door clicked shut behind Edward.

When I looked up, he had such an expression on his face that it made my heart leap.

"What?" I questioned, abruptly feeling suddenly ridiculously exposed and self-conscious.

He shook his head, as if to get rid of the silly grin on his lips. "Nothing, nothing," he said, turning to examine the rest of the room.

I rose from the golden duvet, tugging and smoothing out all of the creases.

When I turned to face Edward again, he was walking toward me. He slid his arms around my waist, and I looped mine around his neck.

"Not the wedding night you'd expect, huh?" he asked, leaning down to press his lips to my jaw.

"Nope," I replied, turning us slightly. Abruptly, I shoved on his chest, causing him to fall back onto the bed. I went with him, and grinned innocently into his face. "Oops, did I accidentally tackle you onto the bed?"

He just grinned widely in response.

The scream of the hair dryer was loud, but the basketball game on the TV could still be clearly heard from the bathroom.

Once my hair was dry, I flicked the dryer off, set it on the bathroom counter, and peered at my face in the mirror. My hair was slightly wild from the hot air, so I smoothed it out. After applying a trace of lip stain and a brushing of mascara, I smoothed out the black dress I wore and spun to head out of the bathroom.

"Edward?" I asked from the doorway.

He was perched on the edge of the humungous, king-sized bed, staring intently at the television screen.

"Edward?" I asked again, a bit louder.

His eyes flickered to my face, then back to the screen. "Yeah?"

"Aren't you gonna get ready?" I questioned, planting a hand on my hip. I took a furtive glance at the alarm clock on the bedside table. "We have reservations for seven o clock."

"I know," he said, his fists clenching, riveted on the game, "I made them, remember?"

"Well, are you going like that?" I asked, flinging a hand toward his topless form. He wore a pair of pajama pants and his hair was without a doubt untameable without a shower.

"Oh, COME ON!" he screamed at the screen. "That was SO not a foul ball! What are you TALKING about?!"

I huffed angrily. "We have twenty minutes before our table is given up."

"Let's just…" he trailed off, becoming too involved in the game again.

"Hmm?"

"Let's just get room service," he requested, eyes still trained on the screen.

I stepped in front of the TV. "Could you look at me for a minute?" I questioned impatiently.

His eyes scorched into my face, slightly chafed.

I lost the words I'd been about to say, my tongue flattening against the roof of my mouth.

"If you're not gonna say anything, get out of the way, please."

I gritted my teeth, but didn't move.

"Why are you so angry?"

"You're just gonna waste our reservations, aren't you?" I demanded, glancing at the clock again. We had ten minutes now.

Edward sighed, rubbing his face vigorously with his palms. I could tell he was frustrated. "Bella…" he trailed off, the words lost in the stale air between us.

"Edward…" I replied in the same tone he had.

He exhaled heavily through his nose and peered up at me again. "If you're going to get so ridiculously worked up about this, I can't even imagine how bad the rest of our marriage is gonna be."

Without being able to control myself, my jaw dropped open and my eyebrows knit over my eyes. "What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?" My arms were now folded defensively across my chest.

"Never mind." Edward snapped, looking to my feet.

"No." I barked. "Tell me."

"It's fine, Bella."

"Ugh!" I cried, flinging my hands into the air. Then I made my way to the hotel door. "Fine," I said as I slipped my feet into my shoes, "if you're not going to be ready in five minutes, I'm going to the restaurant alone. Good bye." I slammed the door behind me before he could say anything.

---

When I arrived at the restaurant, there was so large a line that it backed out all the way to the parking lot. I shoved through the tittering crowds of people, ignoring the angry glares shot my way.

When I reached the front desk, the blond woman looked up at me as if she were peering over a pair of sunglasses from the table plan, red Expo marker still in hand. "Miss, there's a line," she said politely.

"I have reservations. Cullen?" I tried to make my voice sound pleasant, but she obviously sensed the rough, angry undertone to it. I just wanted to be led to an excluded place, and eat my food—salty with my own tears—in silence.

She quickly flipped through a black binder and then straightened up, and looked into my face with genuine concern. "Of course. Right this way," she requested, pulling a red, velvet menu from the shelf behind her, and turned on her heel. She led me through the hustle and bustle of the restaurant and stood aside when we reached a table in the corner of the room. A warm orange light cast a soft glow over the table.

I slid silently into the booth and she placed the menu in front of me. "Thank you," I muttered.

"Um, excuse me?" she said awkwardly.

I looked up.

She glanced over her shoulder, and then back at my face. "You look troubled. I know, I shouldn't be prying, but is everything alright?"

I offered a meek smile. "Um, actually, no," I told her truthfully.

"Oh," her eyebrows knit over her eyes. "My breaks in," she paused to take a look at her silver bangle watch "three minutes. Wanna talk about it?" She slid into the booth across from me without permission, but I didn't mind.

I sighed, knotting my fingers together in my lap. The velvet dress I wore was suddenly suffocating my skin. "I got married a few days ago." I hesitated, and when the woman didn't reply, I looked up into her face. She was staring at me intently. "And I guess we just had a stupid fight, I mean, I shouldn't be so down about it. It's just, we got married, like, three days ago, and we're already fighting, and over something stupid. He said I'm overreacting, and maybe I am. But I don't like being ignored and he was ignoring me, so I got mad, and then he got mad, so I left without him." I said all of this without taking a breath, and I sucked in air greedily as the woman replied.

"Well, I don't know much about marriage, and love, because I've been divorced, but I can tell you that love is the most selfless thing that I've come to know. You need to make sacrifices, and you need to respect your partner's decisions too. I know it may be hard to do in the beginning. Believe me, it was hard for me, and that's why we're divorced. It's not _just_ your life anymore, y'know?"

I nodded to let her know that I did.

"Besides, you two are lucky. Your marriage is fresh. Your fights won't last long. I could bet you anything that he'll show up here within the hour." She smiled and stood, smoothing out her spotless black apron. "In the meantime, can I get you a drink?"

"Um, a Corona, please."

"Sure." She said, jotting it down on a notepad she pulled out of her apron. Then she waltzed away, and I unzipped my purse to pull out my cell phone. There was nothing new, so I shoved it back in my purse, and rested my elbows on the table.

A waitress came to my table a few moments later, a glass in one hand, and the beer in the other. She smiled at me softly when she reached the table, and I saw the dimples appear in her freckled cheeks.

"Hi, I'm Jessie," the redhead informed me as she set both on the table, "And I'll be serving you this evening. Have you had time to look at your menu?" she questioned, pale blue eyes flickering to the closed velvet menu by my left elbow.

"Oh," I said, realizing I hadn't. "No, I haven't. But I'm actually not very hungry right now. I think the beer's good for now."

"Okay," Jessie said smiling. "I'll come back if you change your mind, alright?"

I nodded, and lifted the glass to my lips.

---

I'd consumed three beers and was almost finished my fourth before Edward _finally_ showed up. He wore a pair of dark wash jeans, and a black dress shirt which was precariously tucked in. He'd attempted to tame his hair with gel, and it had only half worked. He caught site of me and lumbered over to the table.

With no warning, I starting giggling, and then hiccupping. And then giggling and hiccupping at the same time.

He slid into the seat across from me, contemplating my flushed face worriedly. His eyes flickered to the cluster of empty bottles beside me, and then the empty glass, and then back to my face. Hesitantly, he reached a hand out to take the neck of the bottle in front of me.

I found this oddly funny and started laughing again.

He shook it surreptitiously, and eyed me in contempt. "Bella," he seemed to chide.  
I hiccupped and pressed my fingers to my lips. "Yes?" I replied, batting my lashes.

"You're drunk."

With no control over my body, I doubled over on myself, laughing hysterically. "I am not!" I cried defensively, and Edward glanced furtively around the room at the rising volume of my voice.

"Bella, shush!" he hissed, clearly chagrined.

I forced my lips to seal, and stared into his face. The laughter was pressing behind my lips, forcing its way out and I started up again.

Edward rolled his eyes, and got up from the table.

"Where are you going?" I demanded, swallowing another gulp of the beer. It went down wrong, and I began to cough violently.

He tugged me out of the seat by my arm, patting me softly on the back as we weaved through the crowds. When we got outside, I started laughing again as soon as the coughing wore off.

I wrapped my arms around his waist, and was able to slur out an, "I love you."

"Ucgh," he said, recoiling away from me. "Your breath stinks, Bella."

I frowned, then breathed into my hand, sniffing. "I don't smell bad."

Edward cocked an eyebrow. "Did you know that people can't actually smell their breath when they do that? It's just a myth."

I slumped against the outside wall of the restaurant, suddenly not feeling so well. I clutched my stomach and tried to breathe in deeply, hoping it might start raining so it would cool me off.

"Let's go back to the hotel," Edward requested, touching my elbow.

I shrugged him off, groaning.

"What?"

I shook my head, swallowing hard. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to force back the tidal wave of nausea.

"You're gonna puke, aren't you?" Edward guessed. "See? I told you you're drunk. You shouldn't have—"

When I bent at the waist abruptly, retching, Edward stopped talking at once.

---

I didn't remember how I ended up tangled in the cool sheets of the hotel room. I sat up, groggily rubbing at my eyes and glanced at the alarm clock on the beside table. It was nearly two AM. Basking in the light of the moonlight able to make its way through the slit of the curtains, I saw my three inch heels lounging on the carpet at the foot of the bed. Surely I would have remembered walking back to the hotel from the restaurant in _those_. I still wore my dress, and I climbed out of bed to change into my pajamas.

Where my suitcase was supposed to be on the chair, Edward was softly snoring, head crooked back, lips slightly parted, thin blanket tangled awkwardly around his left leg and right arm.

I squatted down next to him to rummage through my suitcase. Once I found a suitable pair of pajamas, I changed, and then went into the washroom to brush my teeth. My mouth tasted horrible.

When I saw myself in the mirror, I winced. I decided to wash my face, and then tugged the brush through my damp, tangled hair.

When I emerged back into the hotel room, Edward was stirring in the chair. I flicked the bathroom light off before he opened his eyes and leaned against the wall.

"You're neck is going to kill in the morning," I informed him, to let him know I was awake, and that the silhouette standing by the bathroom door wasn't a murderer, but in fact, his wife.

He groaned. "It already does," he muttered. "How do you feel?" he asked.

I shrugged. "Tired."

I could make out the nod of his head in the darkness. "No headache?"

"Nope."

"No nausea?"

"None."

"Hmm. Good. So there's no chance you're going to throw up on my shoes again?"

I inevitably flushed. "I did that?" I questioned meekly.

Surprisingly, I heard him chuckle. "Yeah, you did."

"Gross," I said, crinkling my nose.

"You bet."

"I'm sorry."

He sighed, realizing now that I wasn't talking about throwing up on him anymore. "I know," he said, "I am too. I shouldn't have said that thing about marriage…"

I inched over to him to sit on the arm of the chair. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into his lap. I nestled my face against his shoulder, closing my eyes. His hands ran soothingly up and down my back, and I shivered.

Somehow, he was able to drape the thin blanket back over us, and I was already too far under to acknowledge that we were falling asleep in the cramped chair.

END A/N: Reviews are better than puking on Edward's shoes.


	6. Breathe

**A/N: Yes! My science exam is finished! I probably failed, but whatever! I'm just glad it's over! Yayyy! So, here's the next chapter. It's really angstful, just to warn you… and… yeah. Have fun reading it!**

**- - -**

Our new house was a disaster. It was cute and everything, French country house styled. But a few shackles on the roof had fallen off, some were cracked. One of the back windows in the house was smashed, and Edward and I hadn't noticed it until we'd bought it a few weeks before. Edward kept putting off unpacking all of his junk, so I was constantly tripping over it in the hallways, and it had been raining non-stop ever since we got back. Some days the rain split mercilessly from the clouds, and others were dry, but overcast and depressing. It didn't help that our roof had random leak spots. Every time we thought we'd caught one, there'd be another one.

And it _especially_ didn't help that I was cranky, tired all the time, and crampy. Apparently the Advil had been lost in the move, because I swear on my life I spent two hours one day looking for it, and hadn't discovered it. I'd been so busy around the house that I didn't have time to go out and get any more, so I had to suffer through the headaches, cramps and backaches. It surprised me. I was hardly ever crampy, even during my period.

Guests were constantly in and out of our tiny, cramped house, and it was embarrassing, truthfully, because I barely had time to clean while I was trying to unpack through the, sometimes gruelling, pain.

- - -

"Edward," I called from the bedroom. The TV was loud, and I had to shout unnecessarily loud to get his attention.

I heard the volume inching down, and then, "What?!"

"Come here!"

I heard the groan of the old, second-hand couch we'd bought as he rose from it, and the pad of his feet against the hardwood floor in between the living room and the staircase. A moment later, I sensed him in the bedroom doorway.

"What? What is it?" He sounded a little out of breath from his jog up the stairs.

I emerged from the adjoining washroom, clutching my stomach. His eyes were panicked as he appraised my posture. His lips parted, but no sound emitted from them.

I removed my hands to reveal the bleach stain across my stomach of the dark blue shirt and pouted. "I loved this shirt."

Edward exhaled loudly and sunk onto the bed. He ran his fingers through his hair. "God, Bella," he muttered into his hands, and his tone was slightly pissed.

"What?" I wanted to know, leaning against the doorjamb in between the washroom and the bedroom.

He didn't answer for a long time, and the only sound in the room was his heavy breathing.

"Edward." I said, moving a little closer to him, concerned now.

He rose so abruptly from the bed that it startled me. "I thought you were fucking pregnant!"

I felt my face blanch, and my lips part. "W-what?" I finally stuttered. "What are you talking about?"

I'd never heard Edward swear in my life. Never. Not in all the ten years I'd known him.

Instead of replying, he stormed suddenly from the room. I heard his footfalls on the stairs, across the hardwood again, and then the slam of the front door. I winced unconsciously as it bashed violently into the door jamb.

"What the hell?" I heard my own voice whisper.

- - -

At approximately eight o' clock thunder reverberated through the cavernous spaces of our house. Five seconds later, lightening flashed through the window and I felt my heart pick up its pace.

I sunk onto the couch, hoping Edward would be home soon. He would be trapped in the rain.

I flicked on the TV, hoping the mind numbing effect it had on me would distract me for awhile. But as I attempted to focus on the eight o' clock news, my mind wandered unwillingly toward Edward and what had happened in the bedroom earlier. I hadn't found a logical explanation for it, and when I had called Angela for her opinion, she had no clue as to what was with him either.

"_I don't know, Bella," she had said, "that's a strange reaction."_

"_I know," I'd agreed. "It was almost as if he were… angry or something…"_

Another rumble of the thunder jarred me back into reality, and then, accompanying the next flash of lightning, the TV conked out. I tried pressing the 'power' button, but nothing happened. Then I rose off of the couch and dodged the mine-field of boxes to get to the kitchen. Somehow, in all the chaos of unpacking, I'd thought to plug in the phone. I picked it up, pressed 'talk' and brought it to my ear, but all I earned was a sharp nothing.

"Ugh," I groaned when I realized the power must have gone out.

With nothing else to do, I donned my lime-green and heather grey wind breaker and flip flops and exited the house.

The rain was like needles on my skin and scalp, and I squinted through the deluge, to see if Edward was coming back up the road. But everyone sane was inside. The whole side of my street was black, a faint glow of a candle spilling from the windows of a few. The other side of the kid-friendly street was completely fine. I flipped up the hood of my jacket, jammed my hands into my pockets and began my trek up the way I thought Edward would have gone—toward the basketball court around the corner.

My jeans were hugging to my legs, and my feet were sliding around in my flip flops like an inexperienced ice skater.

I finally reached the basketball court, of course, soaked to the bone now, and lo and behold, Edward was there in the torrent, bouncing a basketball on the damp concrete as if he were oblivious to the volley around him. His light blue shirt was practically glued to his torso, and his hair was dripping with water. Every once in awhile, he would pause to shake it out of his face, but then he continued to shoot hoops.

"Edward!" I called over the wish-wash of rainfall.

He didn't hear me, and I raised my hands to cup them around my mouth. My hood flew from my head, slapping me in the back. The rain attacked my hair, whipping it around in the wind. I felt as if I were in the center of a hurricane.

"EDWARD!" I screamed, stepping closer.

He spun on his heel so quickly that he skidded across the slippery concrete. When he saw it was me, he dropped the basketball to the ground and jammed it under his foot.

I motioned for him to come closer with my hand.

He obliged, taking a few steps toward my direction.

"Come on! Let's go home!" I offered.

He shook his head furiously, and turned back toward the hoop.

I huffed angrily, shaking some water off of my arms and strode toward him. He was lining up the ball with the net, but before he could launch it, I jumped up and snatched it from his hands.

"Are we going to do this again?" I questioned, now able to speak at a regular volume being that we were close.

"What do you mean?" he asked, making no attempt to steal the ball back.

"Fight. You ignoring me."

Edward sighed. "Not if you don't want to."

"Why would I want to fight with you?" I questioned, absolutely dubious as to why I would want that.

Edward shrugged, averting his eyes toward the purple clouds, finally looking like he realized it was raining. He shuddered in his scant clothes. He mumbled something I didn't quite catch, and leaned toward him on my tip toes.

"What?"

"You're just a bit melodramatic, that's all," he said a bit louder.

I opened my mouth to counteract what he had said, but then I realized I might have been a _teensy_ bit melodramatic.

"You're still upset about the basketball game thing?" I demanded, shocked. It had been a month and some!

"No."

"Then what?" I was completely and utterly bewildered.

"I thought you were pregnant!" he shouted into the torrent of rain, furiously.

"Yeah, I caught that earlier. Why are you…?" I cut myself off by gasping. "You're _upset_ that I'm not _pregnant_?" I cried, the realization of the fact whirling my mind.

He shrugged petulantly.

"No, tell me!" I commanded, dropping the ball and knotting my fingers into the hem of his t-shirt.

He shrugged my fingers from his clothing, staring stubbornly over my head.

"_Edward!_ Tell me!"

"YES!" he screamed, now piercing my face with his eyes. "YES! OKAY?! I'M MAD THAT YOU'RE NOT PREGNANT!"

I blinked, clearing my eyes of the rain. "_What_?"

I heard his huff of frustration, and he crossed his arms across his water-logged chest, shuddering again. He didn't bother to answer me.

"_Why?_"

"I swear, you can be so blond sometimes," he muttered.

I scoffed defensively. "That was rude."

He bobbed his shoulders again, not bothering to apologize or care that he'd offended me.

I took a deep breath. "Edward," I whispered, suddenly not caring that he couldn't hear me. He didn't give the impression of being concerned about my input, so whatever. "I don't want to be pregnant."

The left corner of his lips twitched in spectism.

"You don't _know_ what I do and don't _want_!" I cried, suddenly angry.

He was like a statue, unmoving, even as the wind and the rain nearly bowled me over.

"SAY SOMETHING, ASSHOLE!" I screamed, unable to control myself.

He didn't move. Not a twitch in his facial composure, or the muscles in his arms—not even his fingers flexed in annoyance.

"SAY," I screamed, shoving hard against his chest. He stumbled back, dropping his arms to keep his balance. "SOMETHING!" I shoved him again. I shoved harder, and still he stared stone-faced over my head. My hands balled into angry fists.

His eyes flickered to my face. "Do it." He said, so quiet I almost missed his words.

"What?" I yelled, attempting to calm my anger.

He grabbed my wrists. "Hit me!" he screamed back.

I didn't say anything.

"Do it!" he screamed.

The anger bubbled in my chest, up my throat and frothed over. Without thinking, I snapped my wrist back, making purchase with his face. I pulled back, clapping my hands over my mouth—shocked at what I'd just done. He held his hand to his mouth, and when he pulled it away, blood stained his hand. It faded with the rain.

"Edward…" I whispered.

He scoffed a surprised laugh. But he didn't say anything. His eyes rose to my face, suddenly hard.

I swallowed. My heart was lodged in my throat. "I'm leaving," I told him, and then turned on my heel, forcing myself to walk away from him.

_I will not cry,_ I promised myself as I walked. _I will not cry…_

- - -

"I will not cry." I assured Rosalie when she opened the door to B12, aka, her apartment.

"Oh my God," she breathed when she took in my drenched form. "What _happened_ to you?"

"Long story short, Edward's a jerk. A huge, pain in the ass jerk." I told her, squeezing past her, into the comforts of her apartment. I'd always loved Rosalie's apartment. She bought the kookiest artwork, and left the most random of things lying around. Once I'd seen a butterfly clip wrapped in a paisley scarf. I told her I didn't want to know. Now I was staring at a bright purple bowl of pop corn, two Bud Light Limes sat on the table in front of the couch along with the case to Transformers the first. Oh, and did I mention there was a shirtless boy sprawled out on her couch? Emmett, Rosalie's long-time boyfriend sat up to see who had walked in the door. His blue eyes widened when he took in my appearance, and then he recovered.

"Hey, Bella," he greeted.

"Hi, Em," I glumly replied, continuing on the spare bedroom. I shut the door, dumped my bags on the bed, and stood there in the middle of the dark room like a vampire, arms at my sides.

"I'll be right back." I heard Rosalie say. Then there was a faint smacking of lips as she probably bent down to kiss him, and a moment later, the door to the spare room creaked open.

"Bells?" Rosalie tentatively questioned, stepping up behind me.

"I will not cry," I whispered forcefully as my eyes welled. I squeezed my eyelids together and hugged myself to keep the sobs inside, but it was a huge burden. It was heavy, and I wasn't strong at all. The tears leaked from my eyes and down my cheeks, and a pitiful, muffled sob escaped from my throat.

Rose reached out tentatively to wrap her arms around me, but then thought better, tapped me lightly on the shoulder and reached into her back pocket. A moment later, she emerged, armed with her LG Keybo.

When I eyed it quizzically, she raised an eyebrow and explained, "I'm calling in reinforcements."

- - -

Rosalie's front door flew open and bashed against the wall. The force of it caused a few band posters that had been taped to the bright red door to flutter to the ground.

"SHIT HAPPENS!" Lauren screamed, stepping through the ajar entrance.

"What she said!" Alice announced, shoving past Lauren. "I brought B&J's. Half-baked."

"I love you?" Angela questioned, stepping through the door, a Nightmare Before Christmas backpack dangling from the crook in her elbow. Compliments of Lauren, no doubt.

I sat unmoving on the couch, knees to my chest, glaring at my best friends glumly.

Emmett awkwardly rose to his feet from the other couch, scooping his shirt up off the ground. The other girls pretended not to notice as he pulled it over his head.

"I'm gonna… go," he said to Rosalie, bent down to peck her quickly on the cheek and then scampered from the apartment, pulling the door shut behind him.

"Rosalie, where are your spoons?" Alice asked from the kitchen.

"Drawer by the stove," she told her through a mouthful of popcorn. When she plucked her bud light off the coffee table and brought it to her lips, I abruptly stole it from her and took a huge gulp.

"Jesus Christ!" she cried, snatching the bottle back. "It's _beer_! Not _water_! God, child," she scolded before taking another sip.

I pouted. "I got drunk on our honeymoon and ruined the whole thing," I moped.

Alice plopped down on the couch beside me and shoved the half-baked tub of Ben and jerry's underneath my chin. From the depths of the ice cream, stabbed six silver spoons. I plucked one from the ice cream and licked the ice cream off the spoon half heartedly.

"Look. We brought movies." Angela said, appearing almost miraculously in front of me, the black and purple back pack in hand. She unzipped it in one swift motion and dumped the contents on the table.

Two more tubs of B&J's tumbled out onto the coffee table. I caught the labels of them both. Peanut Butter Tracks, and Brownie Sundae. Along with the ice creams came _The House Bunny_, _Fired Up!_, and _How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days._

"What do you wanna watch first?" Rosalie asked.

I simply shrugged. "I don't care. Whatever you guys feel like."

The girls ended up deciding on _Fired Up!_ so after if was popped into the DVD player, everyone settled into the couches, on the shag rug on the floor, feet and legs draped over various body parts, heads resting in various laps. This was how we usually watched movies. I was squished between Alice and Angela, and I shovelled Half Baked ice cream into my mouth mindlessly, focusing on the fake cheer and happiness exuding from the actors on the screen.

Just as Nick and Eric were performing their cheer in front of the camp official, Angela cocked her lips toward my ear and whispered, "So why did you and Edward get into that huge fight anyway?"

I was immediately overwhelmed by the fresh cucumber smell of her deodorant mixing with her _Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker_ perfume.

"He thought I was pregnant," I murmured into her ear.

"_What?!_" she and two other people cried in unison.

"Why didn't you _tell_ me?!" Alice cried in what sounded very much like complaint.

By this time someone had thought to pause the movie, and five pairs of eyes were on me.

"I'm not _pregnant_!" I insisted, staring around at my shocked group of friends.

"Ohh!" Alice breathed in relief. "Phew!"

"Yeah, but tell that to Edward," I muttered, folding my arms across my chest. Alice picked up the Half-Baked from my lap and scooped out a huge spoonful.

"Why?" she asked through a mouthful of frozen delight.

I sighed. "He was angry that I wasn't pregnant. And then, like all fights go, it turned into something way bigger than that, and I left. Simple."

"Did he call yet?" Lauren asked.

"He's probably not _that_ desperate," I told her, throwing a side-glance in her direction.

"He's your husband, Bell. Of course he's desperate. Check your phone!"

"No. I don't wanna talk to him."

Alice pouted. "If you won't, I will. And you know I'm telling the complete and utter truth."

I almost uttered a growl of frustration, because I _so_ knew it was. "You can't control how my relationships go, Alice," I contradicted her.

Alice folded her arms stubbornly across her chest. "Bella, if you've forgotten," she said, holding up my left hand. The ring glinted in the blue light from the TV, "you're married. Just a month and a half ago you vowed that you'd stay with Edward no matter what. You've been hooked on him since grade seven. I of all people should know this. You came to me for everything. You—"

"Why don't _you_ take him then?" I asked her, the ring suddenly weighing a ton. "You liked him at some point, didn't you?"

Even though my tone burned with venom, Alice laughed. "Yeah, like, ten years ago. Anyway, that's beside the point. You and Edward need to make up."

I stood from the couch when the other girls joined in on Alice's enthusiasm. "Stop, guys!" I demanded, suddenly frustrated. "You need to stop telling me how to run my life. Edward and I will make up if it's the right thing to do. Just because we're married doesn't mean that we're going to stay together. I'm not going to force myself to stay with someone if I'm unhappy."

"Bella, you've been hung up on him since you were thirteen years old. That means something." Alice adamantly pointed out.

To that, I had no answer.

- - -

In the dream, Edward and I were in the backyard of our house. We were sitting in the old, faded pool we kept in the backyard of my old house for my dog to play in. The sun beat down heavily on the top of my head, warming my hair against my scalp. I could feel my shoulders burning, and found it odd that I could feel these things so clearly in a dream.

Little wavelets of water lapped against my bare stomach as he shifted in the water across from me. How we both fit in the forty-five inch pool was beyond me. I tugged on the straps of my bikini, suddenly uncomfortable.

"Bella?" Edward asked, and I looked up into his face.

"What?"

"I think you should come home."

"I am home," I replied, completely oblivious. We were in the backyard of our house.

"I miss you," he said as if I hadn't uttered words at all.

I sighed, knotting my fingers together. "I just think we need some time to work things out, okay?"

He frowned, and before we could engage into anymore conversation, I stood abruptly from the pool and stepped onto the grass. It lodged itself in between my toes and stuck to the bottoms of my feet, and I walked as quickly as I could across the lawn.

Abruptly, quicker than I thought possible, Edward's arm was in front of me, blocking my gait. He shifted his body in front of mine so there was no way I could get around him.

Before I could say anything, his hands were on my upper arms, and his face was inches from mine.

"Don't—" I began to say, but my words were cut off by his lips against mine.

When my eyes closed in the dream, they opened to reality.

I sat up slowly in bed, trying to shake the dream from my mind. The sheets were tangled around my legs, and tiny beads of sweat had formed on my brow.

Carefully, I rose from bed, as to keep my balance. I shivered when the cool air from the fan across the room washed over my skin. The orange light from the streetlamp outside was washing in from the window, lighting up the room in an inferno. I eased the door open, and it squeaked loudly, reverberating through Rosalie's apartment. I crossed the large room to the kitchen and slipped onto a bar stool. There was an abandoned half-full glass of water and a book with a generic black cover. The overhead light from the stove shone brightly, and I tilted the book so I could read the spine. But the golden words there were too scratched to make out any of the words. I slumped forward on the cool granite of the countertop, glaring at the phone beside me.

Without thinking, I picked it up and ran my thumbs over the keypad, hesitating. I dialled my home number, and then pressed end. I dialled it three more times, and on the third time pressed talk.

I brought the phone to my ear, taking a deep breath.

It rang four times before there was a click, informing me that Edward had picked up. There was a rustle of bed sheets—probably as he dragged the phone across the bed toward him—and then breath in the phone.

"Hello?" he said groggily.

I didn't answer, the words suddenly lodging in my throat. My breath came shallowly, and I swallowed, trying to work up the nerve to say something, to say _anything_!

"Hello?" Edward said again, this time a little more tersely. "Is anyone there?"

I pulled the phone from my ear, hung up, and slumped back onto the countertop, resting my face in my arms.

- - -

**A/N: Reviews are better than Bella punching Edward in the face =D**


	7. Effects of Alcohol

**A/N: Hello, lovelies! So here is the seventh instalment of ARR! It is only ten chapters long—I'm thinking of doing a sequel, but I don't know if I've gained enough readers for that to happen. I don't think I have the motivation. Anyway, on that… not so great note, here's the seventh chapter!**

**- - -**

"Bella, are you finished yet?!" Rosalie called through the washroom door. The shower was running, the hot water splashing against the tile walls and porcelain floor, and a towel was set on the closed seat of the toilet, but I wasn't in the shower. I was sitting on the floor, fully clothed in sweat pants and a tank top, knees huddled to my chest. I didn't want to go clubbing, and my friends weren't going to make me, no matter how hard they tried.

"Bella, hurry up in the shower already! We're gonna be late!" This time, another voice called through the door. Alice's tone was demanding, and a little short.

I didn't answer her, focusing on the lit Glade Apple Cinnamon candle by the sink.

The door knob jiggled, and then the door clicked as it opened. The force of the door opening sent the flame out and smoke swirled up through the air. I didn't move my head to acknowledge their entrance.

"Why aren't you--?"

"Y'know, I could have been naked," I mumbled.

Even though I wasn't looking at my friends, I could imagine Alice rolling her eyes in annoyance.

"If you're not going to get ready, then you can forget about coming with us."

"I don't care," I replied, "I don't even want to go."

"Bella!" Both Rose and Alice whined in unison.

I turned my head toward them, taking in both of their faces. Neither of them wore the slightest trace of makeup. Alice was dressed in a pair of ratty old boxer shorts and a lacy cami, while Rosalie wore one of Emmett's grey sweatshirts over a pair of dark purple leggings. The sleeves covered most of her hands, and it reached her mid-thigh.

Angela appeared in the bathroom doorway then, looking glum. She wore the usual pair of jeans, but one—or all—of the girls had forced her into a low-cut, ice blue shirt. Her hair was curled and grazed her shoulders. Her blue eyes were accented by a trace of black liner and two coats of Lash Blast mascara. She folded her arms across her chest, and appraised my slobbish appearance.

"Why are you allowed to sit on the bathroom floor in sweats?" she demanded.

"She's not," Alice interjected before I could answer, moving closer to me. She grabbed my arm and forcefully tugged me to my feet. "She was just getting in the shower." She continued, shoving me toward the steaming water.

I groaned, turning toward them. "I _really_ don't want to go," I moped.

"We gotta go!" Alice exclaimed. "There's this really cool theme tonight!"

I sighed. "Whatever!" I finally snapped. "Get out. I'll shower."

The girls obediently left the washroom, pulling the door shut behind them.

I peeled off my clothes and stepped beneath the spray, my stubbornness melting away when the hot water hit my skin. It smoothed away all of the kinks and tenseness I had been experiencing the last week. The moisture seeped into my pores, the water soaked into my hair. I rubbed shampoo and conditioner through my locks and then just stood under the spray awhile longer, closing my eyes.

Half an hour later, when the water began to run cold, I shut the taps off and stepped out of the shower, wrapped a towel around myself.

After drying my hair and brushing my teeth, I stepped out of the washroom and into the spare bedroom. The girls were posted in various places of the room. Alice and Rosalie attempted to share the mirror, Lauren was leisurely brushing out her hair, slumped against the far wall, and Angela was sprawled across my bed, flipping lazily through a fashion magazine. Beside her, atop the sheets was the outfit I was destined to wear. It consisted of a pair of too-short denim shorts, and a peasant style spiceberry colored tunic. Knee-high boots completed the look and I groaned.

"Guys," I said, crossing my arms across the house coat I wore, "there is no way I'm wearing that."

"Yes you are. Even if we have to dress you ourselves," Alice said, shoving me toward the bed.

I huffed, but picked up the clothes. "I hate you guys so much, you know that, right?" I said before disappearing back out into the hall to change in the bathroom.

"We love you too!" They called after me.

- - -

It was Saturday night, so as always; the Sassy Apple had a theme. Tonight's was a masquerade. At the door they handed out generic black masks, and at a table inside you could decorate it however you wanted. Once the girls and I got past there, we made our way toward the bar to pick up drinks.

Five minutes later, we had all squeezed ourselves into a booth.

I sipped the lemon-water on the table in front of me, and shifted in the leather seat. It was sticking to the backs of my thighs.

"I feel exposed," I complained.

"That's what clubbing is all about," Rose contradicted after setting down her apple martini, "dressing up as slutty as you like, and people can't say a thing!"

I sighed, slamming back more water. It froze the roof of my mouth and I shuddered as it slithered down my throat.

"And put your mask on!" Alice demanded from beside Rosalie. Both wore theirs over their eyes, and I reluctantly slapped mine on too, grumbling miserably under my breath.

- - -

The blast of the music was uncomfortable in my ears, and my head pounded in time with the beat. I examined the three empty martini glasses on the table in front of me, immediately regretting my drinking binge. I was, had been and always would be, an easy drunk—but maybe that was why I'd done it. I just wanted to be out of my stressful life for a couple of hours. Then I would go back. Was it so bad to think like that? Besides, this way, I didn't feel so miserable.

Angela plunked down in her seat across from mine, dark hair swaying in the inexistent breeze in the club. She stared at me with sad blue eyes, ringed with the small amount of black eyeliner Rose had forced upon her.

"How are you holding up?" she wanted to know, running her fair finger up the stem of one of the empty martini glasses.

I reached into the same glass, and plucked the olive from it. As I popped it in my mouth I raised my eyebrows at her. "I could ask you the same question," I replied and then hiccupped, giggling.

She surreptitiously eyed the martini glasses glinting in the overhead lights of the club.

"I'm going to get another martini," I said and slid out from the booth before Angela had time to protest. I stumbled over my own two feet as I made my way through the crowd, squinting against the glare of the lights piercing my too-sensitive eyes. I reached the bar, searching for the familiar balding bar tender who had served me the last three martinis. But I couldn't find the familiar white shirt he'd been wearing.

I squeezed through the group of people crowded around the bar and flattened my palms against the granite countertop, leaning forward to better search for him.

"Can I help you?" a voice said in my ear. I jumped, whipping my head to come face-to-face to the man who had just spoken. He winced when my hair whipped his cheek.

He wore a mask, just like the rest of us, and a hat, so I couldn't really make out what he looked like. But there was something so familiar about him… I couldn't put my finger on it.

I nodded. "Yeah. Can—"

Before I could continue what I was saying, I caught site of the blender in front of him. A bright pink swirl spun around and around in its confines until he flicked it off, grabbed a tumbler, poured some of it in, stuck a straw in it and handed it to me.

I tentatively retrieved it from his hands, peering into the smoothie-like substance. "What's it called?" I wanted to know.

"Kiss me," he replied—and so I did.

When I pulled away, he stared at me blankly. "Um… I meant that was what the drink was called, but…" he offered an awkward tight lipped smile as he trailed off.

I felt my cheeks burn, but it felt good. I giggled, but it was drowned out by the booming music of the club. Nervously, I took a huge gulp of _Kiss Me_. It gave me brain freeze, but I shook it off.

When I looked back up into the guy's face, he was staring intently at me.

"Uh…" he said, glancing over his shoulder at the Coca Cola clock on the wall, "my break starts in a minute. Wanna hang outside or something?"

"Sure," I replied without thinking. I took another gulp of the drink. I could taste a generous amount of tequila.

Five minutes later, we were standing on the curb. I finished off the second glass of _Kiss Me_, ignoring the dizzying spin of my mind. A car whizzed by, stirring up the dampness of the street.

I glanced at the guy next to me. He was bathed in the light of street lamp, and he stood awkwardly with his hands in his pockets. The light illuminated the chiselled features of his face.

"So…" I faltered awkwardly.

He cleared his throat.

I lowered myself onto the curb of the sidewalk, attempting to swallow back the guilty lump in my throat. A moment later I heard the shift of denim against cement as he sat down beside me.

I adjusted the mask on my face, confirming that there was no way I would take it off. Maybe if he didn't know who I was, if I _knew_ that he didn't, maybe my conscience wouldn't be so bad.

I tugged the shorts lower on my thighs, uncomfortable.

"So… bartending…"

"Yeah," he said, "I'm not actually on it full time. I'm just filling in for one of my friends tonight."

I nodded, closing my eyes to shut out the spinning of the world around me.

"Will you do me a favour?" I asked him after a moment of silence.

"What?" he questioned.

"Kiss me again?" I opened my eyes when I said this.

He was staring at me, and I only knew this because his body was turned toward me. His face was shadowed by the shroud of the night. But his warm hands made contact with my face and pulled it toward his. Just as our lips touched, I heard the back door of the Sassy Apple burst open, and the song _Angel _by Shaggy spilled out onto the pavement. He started to pull away, but I restrained him by clamping down on his shoulders firmly with my hands.

"Ahem!" a voice sounded from the shadows, and I recognized it to be Alice.

I gasped, pulling away from the guy as if he were on fire.

"Oh my god," I gasped, clambering to my feet so quickly that I nearly fell flat on my face. "I… Oh my god!" I said, stumbling back toward the shadows.

"What are you _doing_?" she shrieked under her breath, digging her nails into my skin so hard that I had to suppress the yelp of pain.

I glanced furtively toward the guy, suddenly realizing for the first time that I hadn't caught his name. He was peering into the shadows, probably searching for us. But the awning threw a cloak of darkness over Alice and me, making it impossible for him to see us.

I guided Alice back into the club, the pounding of the music suddenly too much in my ears. My stomach flopped over in my stomach, and I nearly tossed my cookies.

"Not again," I moaned to myself.

"What?" Alice demanded.

"Too much to drink," I replied, tugging her toward the washroom.

When I slammed the door behind us, we were lucky to find that the washroom was empty. I rested my palms on the counter by the sink, peering into my own reflection. The light fixtures cast a greenish glow over my skin, and I found it sort of ironic—judging by how I felt at the moment.

"What the _hell_ was that, Bella?" Lila demanded, leaning against the piece of metal between two of the stalls.

I glanced at her in the mirror, frowning. "I don't know. I'm too drunk to find out too."

Alice sighed disapprovingly and crossed her arms over the neon yellow, one shouldered top she wore.

I twisted the cool tap on, flooding the cup I made with my hands with water. I washed it over my cheeks, closing my eyes and revelling in the chill of the water.

"You sound like my mother," I murmured into my hands.

"Well, excuse me for caring about your life!" she protested. "Must you forget, you're still a married woman!"

I groaned, letting my eyelids flutter open again. I flattened my hands against my collarbone, hoping that maybe it would suppress the urge to throw up.

Alice stomped toward the door in her platform Mary Janes. "I hope you puke," she told me angrily, "you deserve it."

I didn't open my eyes, but I knew she left when the door slammed. I sighed, sending the air upwards so it would wash a few pieces of hair from my forehead. I agreed with Alice. I did deserve to feel like crap. I was married, and I'd just cheated on Edward.

The realization of what I'd just done sent me into hiccupping sobs. It was so unexpected and so unreasonable, that I cried harder.

- - -

The weeks that followed were tense, nerve-wracking and tough to get through. I avoided seeing people as much as possible, and stayed inside as much as humanly possible without causing my skin to yellow. When I got outside the remaining rays of sun felt like they were burning my skin. I didn't deserve the cheeriness of the sun. I deserved to be cooped up in the darkness of a cell with nothing to keep me company but my dismal thoughts.

My friends, of course, tried to cheer me up, but none of it helped. Not even when Alice and I talked about our confrontation in the Sassy Apple's washroom. We decided that we would keep what had happened a secret—for now. She made it very clear that I would have to tell Edward sooner or later. But the way things were going made it sound that a conversation with Edward was less likely than Paris Hilton sticking with one BFF.

The longest we'd ever gone without ever talking to each other was a couple of days. We would always find a way to contact each other. Whether it be through text messages, e-mails or five minute phone calls. But my Voyager stayed silent on the dresser of Rose's spare bedroom, the notification of any new e-mails—other than late congratulations or thank yous for the invites to the wedding—wasn't there, and I was beginning to miss the sound of Edward's voice.

It felt like my heart was hollow—give or take the few spaces my friends and family made up. I didn't find going out exciting anymore, and most of my dinners consisted of TV trays or a measly sandwich.

Despite the drama of the whole thing, no one but the girls were notified of the fight and only Alice knew of the "situation" as we liked to call it.

There were many downs to the separation. The depression—yes, the sickness that seemed to be constantly hovering over me—yes, the absence of Edward's voice—yes, but that wasn't the worst part.

The worst part was that my worst fears had come true. When I'd been, oh, fourteen, I'd developed a rational fear of separation. When my mother had been young, it was so uncommon for parents to be divorced, and when I came to the age of understanding the whole concept of it, it just… wasn't. So, I thought to myself, what would happen when I was old enough to marry? Would it be even worse by then?

Maybe that was one of the reasons I had been so stuck on Edward. He was the one boy I could actually see a future with. I could see us working through troubles together, and laughing, and arguing, and resolving. He was the one person I wasn't scared to be in love with.

And that was the worst part. Because I knew, that if Edward and I _did_ end up getting divorced after only a month and a half of marriage, then I wouldn't find anyone else. Because I was too afraid.

I knew, that if Edward and I were no longer able to be together, I would be alone forever.

- - -

**END A/N: Reviews are better than tears.**


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